Eileen
Typically, when someone tells you they want the whitest teeth they can get you may have a conversation about staying within a "natural" shade. But when Eileen tells you she wants the whitest teeth possible, you listen. Eileen had always had worn teeth and has always wanted to have a bigger, brighter, whiter smile. She finally made that dream a reality! I was concerned that the teeth were going to be too white but when you have a personality and confidence that this wonderful patient does, it is no problem to pull it off. She made this process so much fun, while I was thrilled to see the final result I couldnt help but be a little sad we were done. But at least I get to see her twice each year!
Cindy
This case is one of my favorites by far. Cindy joined Dentistry of the Queen City shortly after I took over the practice in 2014. It was fantastic to meet her initially and we always had lots of big laughs along the way. We talked about the amount of wear that she had as well as possible solutions for us to fix it. When we discussed this with Cindy, it was just not the right time for her to move forward with the plan. She came religiously every 6 months, addressed any issues that came up with her teeth and we kept discussing that one day she would move forward with the game plan. During that time, we she was kind enough to refer several generations of her family and through them, we got to know Cindy even more and realize how terrific of a person she is. When the time was right and the day came for us to get started, I couldn’t wait, because I knew what we could do for her. Through our smile design process, we were able to customize the size and shape of her restorations to fit her face and smile in a way that really mimics nature. We are so appreciative that she allowed us to help her achieve the smile she has always wanted and are beyond ecstatic for her that the case turned out the way it did.
Kia
Sometimes it's the little things that make our job so much fun. Kia recently completed her orthodontics with @webborthodontics. We made the decision to purposely leave spaces so that we can keep a nice wide smile. Closing down all of the spaces between her teeth would not only give her a more narrow smile but also cut down on the space for her tongue, which can cause a whole other list of issues but also compromise the long term result. By understanding the teeth fit within a greater system of function, breathing and smiling, we have to keep all of that in mind when working with our patients. By designing the result of the orthodontics with all of those in mind we are able to do some really conservative dentistry that blends seamlessly with her natural dentition to maximizes the esthetic result but also adheres to the greater principles that will make her smile work like it should and last as long as it should!
Do you ever wonder why sometimes a tooth or a teeth that have been fixed continue to break in the exact same way that they did prior to being fixed? I do too! One thing I cannot stress enough to our patients is “the why”. As in “WHY” does this tooth keep breaking! This patient had some edges of his front teeth that chipped over time and were repaired by his previous dentists, only to find them chip again. Immediately we were able to see that this patient bruxes or grinds his teeth and that yes, we can fix the chips and we can fix the broken edges but how can we be sure that it doesn’t happen again as soon as he leaves our office and heads back up to NYC the next day to continue his journey to becoming the next great American pastry chef! By adding composite to his canines to make sure his teeth disclude and have a proper transition from his canines to his front teeth we can limit the amount of force he is able to put on the edges of his front teeth. This allows us to not only repair the edges but also give him back the contours of the teeth he has worn away so that his function is back to the way it used to be. This will make it so when he goes out to the side like we know he can and does, his edges will not slam together and break. The next thing we will plan to do is to figure out another “why” – why he is grinding his teeth in the first place which we plan to do upon his return to NC.
Joy
This was a great collaborative effort. After finishing up orthodontics with @smilesbyharris and implant by @carolinasoralsurgery we were ready to restore Joy’s smile. If you know Joy, you know that she never had a problem smiling before. Her personality is one that radiates positivity and good vibes and any appointment with her is one that is filled with laughter and good times. With a few minimal prep veneers, an implant restoration and some composite restorations on the lower front teeth, we were able to transform her smile to something she is truly proud of.
Matt
After having some teeth break down to his function being off, Matt decided to look into what was possible to make things ideal so more teeth don’t break. With a combination of orthodontics and porcelain crowns we were able to bring out the full potential of his smile to have a brighter and whither smile!
Marilyn
Margo
Margo had a lot of dentistry in the past. And while it served her well through her life, in the past few years things were starting to deteriorate. In order to preserve her dentition we needed to combine a few bridges and sacrifice some of her failing teeth. By doing this, not only were we able to have a positive impact on her oral health but be able to enhance her smile and give her a more youthful appearance.
Karen
Karen was so much fun to work with to help her recreate her smile. She had a lot of dental work several years ago and she was ready to upgrade the esthetics of her smile. Over time her teeth had shifted and the shade that was selected many years ago wasn’t as white as what she wanted this time around. We were able to design her teeth to take advantage of the full potential of her beautiful smile.
Joe
“I am a gentleman in his 70's who over my lifetime have had "extensive" dental work done. I can truly say without any reservation that Dr. Greg Reece is one of the most professional and talented professionals I have ever experienced. Everything about this practice is outstanding.” -Joe T. This was such a fun case to work on because it combined many different specialties of dentistry: fixed, removable and implant prosthodontics. Joe came in with a lot of different dentistry completed at different times in his life. Some of it was still working for him but none of it worked together properly. When the function is off and you have so many parts with so many minuscule details, the dental work will begin to breakdown. If you pay attention to the details and visualize the end in mind before starting to piece it together, you end up with a result that not only looks better but also feels better and works better. It also helped that he had a low lip line to cover an implant platform there from the start. It took at team effort from my friends up @BVDLVA : Ron Philbrook, Steven Spencer and Rob Thacker but with constant communication we nailed this one!
Jennifer
This was such a fun case and a great display of conservative dentistry. She had always wanted to close the space between her 2 front teeth on both the top and bottom. We were able to leave all of her tooth structure intact and do this completely additive. On the top we used composite bonding to close the spacing between her 2 front teeth to blend in seamlessly with her remaining tooth structure and smile. On the lower we opted to add an “extra tooth” to close the spacing. I was so happy with the way this turned out because the esthetic result, the fact that this was completely additive and that we were able to give this young girl the smile she has always wanted.
Gay
What an absolute joy to work with Gay to give her the smile she has always wanted. Gay had always had really dark teeth due to a type of stain from a medication, called Tetracycline, as a child. It had always been a part of her smile and identity. Over the years while the stain persisted, the function of her teeth was off and as a result she ended up wearing the front teeth down. With the wear and the stain, it finally got to the point where she wanted to restore and enhance her smile. Through porcelain crowns, veneers and bridges we were able to restore her smile to one that not only functions as it should but also looks amazing. Now she can’t stop smiling to show off her new smile.
Bonita
This is one of my favorite cases so far for the main reason it took us over 6 years to create this smile (which was on purpose). It fully illustrates the positive effect that a plan can have. We sat down 6 years ago with Bonita and discussed her goals for her smile. Through that conversation we had an end goal in mind. Due to the scope of what all we were planning to do (crowns, composites, veneers, bridges and implants) we had to figure out a way to make it possible. By staging our treatment, we were able to take baby steps as well as take breaks all the while moving in the right direction towards the final goal. In the end we were able to complete her beautiful smile with the same result that it would have had if we did it all at once.
Vera
With a simple 6 porcelain veneers we were able to truly transform Vera’s smile! Through our smile design process we are always looking for the most conservative way to do things to achieve our patients goals.
Pheeny
We had so much fun working with Pheeny and ended up with such a great result! We needed to replace a bridge that was older and not functioning properly. While we were replacing the bridge, she also wanted to enhance the esthetics of her overall smile and we did so with veneers. In addition to her new restorations we provided orthodontics with Invisalign to straighten her lower teeth and minimize any other work we needed to do to make sure her function was as perfect as the esthetics.
Nick
This was such a satisfying makeover to complete. With the function being off, there was a lot of wear and breakdown of his natural teeth. We chose a combination of crowns and veneers to perfect his smile and function so that they not only look great but function just as great!
Mary
Mary was such a joy to work with to recreate her smile. In addition to enhancing the esthetics and filling out her smile, we were working to address her gum recession and “black triangles” spaces between her teeth at the gum line. With our restorations we were able to fill in the spaces and give her a more youthful smile.
Keith
Through our smile design process we were able to determine that part of Keiths esthetic concern was actually his gum recession. Through gum grafts and then veneers to enhance the teeth we gave him something that he just cant stop smiling about!
Joan
After a lifetime of dark staining due to a medication she took as a child, Joan wanted to finally get the smile she always wanted. In talking with Joan beforehand we decided to keep a little space between her front teeth because she has had it her entire life and identified it with her personality. With veneers on the front teeth and replacing old crowns on some of the back teeth we were able to re-create her smile in a way that has her smiling more than ever.
Jo
With a combination of crowns and veneers we gave Jo a beautiful smile makeover. She had always taken care of her teeth her entire life but with the function being off for so long, the teeth were showing signs of advanced aging and breakdown. She is now smiling with a bigger more youthful smile that she loves!
Dixon
Over the years Dixon had seen things deteriorate past where he ever imagined they would. The day came where he wanted to fix his smile and get his function back to where it was before things started to decline. Through saving what can be saved and sacrificing what couldn’t, we enhanced his smile with a combination of a removable denture held in place with dental implants for his upper jaw and crowns on the lower teeth. In addition to the improved esthetics, we also gave Dixon back his function that allowed him to not only chew better but enjoy his food more.
Deb
This was a long time coming for Deb. She had been wanting a more brilliant smile for quite some time. Once we were able to give her an idea of what we can accomplish, she was all in! A combination of crowns and veneers was used to give her the brightness and shape of her teeth that makes her smile pop while still keeping that natural look that she always wanted.
April
April unfortunately lost a tooth due to a fracture. While exploring the options to replace her tooth we decided on a fixed dental bridge due to needing to add gum tissue to make sure the final result looked like it wasn’t even there. In addition to the bridge we needed to restore her proper function to get her bite healthier. By giving her back her form and function of her worn teeth with crowns and veneers we were not only able to improve her bite and prevent further broken teeth but also give her a dynamite smile!