Compared to chips, cracks, or tooth stains, a gap between your front teeth can seem like a rarer smile flaw. You may even think the issue isn’t something cosmetic dentistry could fix. However, cosmetic dentists can easily treat gapped teeth; the solution will just depend on your problem’s cause. Your Canton dental practice is here to prove these claims with solid and vetted facts. To that end, keep reading to learn about diastemas, their causes, and their cosmetic treatments.
What Caused Your Gapped Teeth?
The term for a front tooth gap is diastema – a space wider than .5 millimeters between any teeth. Though harmless, the space is often unpleasant because it ruins your smile’s looks.
For kids and adults alike, the possible causes of diastemas include:
- Poor Oral Habits –Over time, bad oral habits like thumb sucking, lip sucking, and tongue thrusting put pressure on your front teeth. Said pressure can create a sizable tooth gap.
- Infected Gums –If you suffer severe gum disease, your infection could erode the bone that supports your teeth. This effect could loosen your pearly whites and spread them apart.
- An Overly Large Jaw – Tooth gaps will often form if your jaw is large relative to your teeth.
- Undersized Teeth –When one tooth is smaller than an adjacent one, diastemas will often form.They’re even more likely when the tinier tooth is an upper lateral incisor.
How Can Dentists Fix Them?
Several cosmetic dental options can close gaps between front teeth. The most common of these are:
Porcelain Veneers
Along with tooth stains, chips, and other smile flaws, veneers can also hide diastemas. The shells would cover up the gap between your teeth once they’re securely placed. From there, friends and family would only see a well-aligned smile.
Direct Bonding
While it’s more often used to treat stains and cracks, direct bonding will also hide diastemas. This procedure’s tooth-colored resin would “fill” the space between your gapped teeth. Once this material hardens, you won’t see a diastema in your grin anymore.
Invisalign
Diastemas are among the orthodontic issues that Invisalign can treat. After all, a patient just needs to wear clear trays over the area with the gap. The aligners will then close the unwanted space over time by moving the gapped teeth closer together.
While it isn’t a common flaw, a gap between your front teeth is quite solvable. Fixing it is as simple as seeing your local dental provider!
About the Practice
Robison Dental Group is based in Canton, MI. Led by Dr. J.D. Robison, our practice provides comprehensive dentistry for anyone who wants a better smile. That means we offer preventive, cosmetic, and even restorative services, all of which are tailored to your grin’s exact needs. You can trust our team to make your teeth and gums thrive for a lifetime! For more details or to book a visit, please contact us on our website or by phone at (734)-453-6320.