With a quarter of UK facial aesthetic treatments being carried out by dental professionals, Shaadi Manouchehri discusses how dental treatment and facial aesthetics can work in harmony.
A new study has found that almost a quarter of injectable treatments in the UK are carried out by dentists. With their comprehensive knowledge of the head and neck anatomy and expertise in injecting, dentists are ideally suited to providing these treatments for aesthetic purposes as well as therapeutic.
A lot of the time dentistry and facial aesthetics go hand in hand. When planning a smile makeover, we tend to consider the ideal facial aesthetics and focus on a facially driven treatment plan.
This means that we’re not only transforming the teeth but also ensuring that the smile design is in harmony with the face and integrates well within the patient’s facial proportions.
In a number of cases, we can use injectables alongside dental treatment to achieve this harmony. Below are some examples…
Gummy smile due to hyperactive lip elevator muscles
A gummy smile is defined as less than 2mm of gingival display on smiling. This can be due to increased vertical proportions or hyperactive lip elevator muscles.
In some cases, surgery may be the ideal solution to address the gummy smile, particularly where there is an underlying skeletal discrepancy.
In cases of hyperactive lip elevator muscles, we may be able to use a neuromodulator to relax the muscles and reduce the appearance of the gummy smile.
This is an incredibly effective treatment. In addition, when applied to the correct cases, this treatment can yield life changing results with minimal downtime and discomfort for the patient.
Considering the alternatives to this treatment may be surgery or surgical crown lengthening, patients are often quite happy to opt for this treatment instead. If patients wish to maintain the desired effect, we would usually recommend repeating the procedure approximately every three to four months depending on the activity of the muscles.
Retrognathic mandible
In cases of an underlying class II skeletal pattern, patients may complain of the appearance of a retruded chin. A prominent and well defined chin is considered aesthetic and, in some cases, we may be able to mask the appearance of a retrognathic mandible and enhance the chin using dermal fillers.
This treatment can be very effective with minimal downtime for the patient and can last up to six to 12 months or even more depending on the case.
These are only a couple of examples of how we can use injectables to enhance and aid our dentistry. Being able to consider these options and administer them if required as an adjunct to dental treatment will go a long way in establishing rapport with patients and building trust.
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Read more Ironing out the Creases columns:
- Alternatives to injectables
- What not to do in facial aesthetics marketing
- How to grow your facial aesthetics list
- Dermal filler complications
- Botulinum toxin complications.
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