Dental Veneers

Your smile is one of the first things other people notice about you. You deserve a porcelain crown, veneer or even composite bond that matches your other teeth.  A confident, sincere and beautiful smile helps you make a great first impression.

When you smile, no one else but your dentist should know that you have had dental work. A broken front tooth is a dental emergency – and even emergency dental treatment needs to give beautiful results. The dentists at McCarl Dental Group in Millersville and Greenbelt Maryland treat cosmetic dental problems as true dental emergencies. When a dental emergency is causing pain, discomfort or embarrassment – we ask, “How soon can you meet us at one of our dental offices?” For three generations, we have treated our patients like family.

Catherine Brandt, a dental patient who visits both our Millersville and Greenbelt Maryland dental offices broke her front tooth. Here is what Catherine said about her experience at McCarl Dental Group. “I never realized how much I valued the ability to smile with confidence until I broke my front tooth.  I wasn’t in any pain, but Dr. Clayton McCarl still treated it as an emergency and fixed me right up with a temporary crown.  Soon after, Dr. Clayton took a mold and fitted me with a permanent crown that perfectly matched my other front tooth in color.  I visited other dentists when I lived outside of Maryland, and each commented on the quality work that Dr. Clayton did on my crown.  The same outstanding level of care and talent is applied to all of my dental needs from the doctors, hygienists, and staff at McCarl Dental.”

At McCarl Dental Group we strive for excellence in dental care. 3-D Digital scanning with CAD/CAM technology has become a critical component of top quality dentistry.

CAD/CAM is an acronym for computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing. Cadent iTero digital impressions use CAD/CAM technology to digitally capture the surface and contours of the tooth and gingival structures. This enhances the design, analysis, and manufacture of dental restorations including dental crowns, bridges and veneers.

On January 10, 2011 Align Technology and Cadent Announced a Joint Development Agreement to develop 3-D digital scanning for impressions for Invisalign orthodontic treatment. The new applications will improve assessment, diagnosis and planning for orthodontic treatment by dentists who use the Cadent iTero digital scanner for their Invisalign orthodontic cases. Dental patients who are candidates for Invisalign orthodontics will love the convenience and comfort of digital scanning for dental impressions. Dentists will love the quality, accuracy and precision of Cadent’s exceptional scanning technology. The technology is in final beta tests now and should become available in the second quarter of 2011.

Dr. Clayton McCarl, Jr is a member of the Dean’s Faculty at University of Maryland Dental School. He was recently asked to provide input about his clinical experience with the iTero Digital Scanning System to Gary Hack, DDS Associate Professor, and Director of Simulation Research at the Dental School in the Department of Endodontics, Prosthodontics and Operative Dentistry. Dr. Hack teaches dental students about CAD\CAM technology. Dr. Hack also presents continuing education courses to dentists reviewing evidence-based support for CAD\CAM and conducts research at the University of Maryland Dental School in cooperation with the ADA.
“Several thoughts come to mind with my experience using the Cadent iTero digital scanner. Digital scanning in lieu of elastomeric impressions is a significant technological advancement that is a must in every progressive practice.  It is not possible to do away with all impressions yet but the digital image produces superior model and dies for the lab technicians or for a milling machine to produce a restoration.  In my 27 years as a dentist, have seen gimmicky, panacea, technologies come and go.  This is for real.

When we were dental students, we trimmed our own dies.  We were encouraged by “old school professors” to continue to do this in our private practices telling us it would make us better dentists. The reason became obvious.  As we became pressed by office time schedules and demands placed upon us, “mystery margins” and slight distortions in an elastomeric impression suddenly started to look more acceptable or go unnoticed.  Dental labs report they are pressured to satisfy their client doctors.  They compensate with gallons of die spacer and creative die trimming.  Yes the crown can be seated but why do some restorations last five years and others twenty-five?

When you scan your prep there is no hiding.  Either you see a clear, defined, continuous margin or you don’t.  It’s like trimming your own dies again only at hyper speed.  You tend to stay above the gum lime with less potential irritation to the gum – significant benefits to our patients.  The margins are more chamfer than feather edge – allowing a wide range of options for restoration material selection.

Restorations insert easily with consistent minimal adjustments and excellent fit.  We strive for excellence in dental care and digital scanning has become a critical component of top quality dentistry.”

The dentists at McCarl Dental Group in Millersville and Greenbelt Maryland were recently voted Best Dentists in the Capital Hometown Annapolis Reader’s Choice Awards.  The Reader’s Choice Awards reflect votes by our dental patients who read the Capital magazine. McCarl dentists have also been named What’s Up? Annapolis Magazine’s Top Dentist. This award represents dentists who were chosen as the best by other dental specialists.  The dentists at McCarl Dental Group specialize in complex comprehensive dental care as well as everyday general dentistry. Our patients’ responses in our smile survey, found at www.mccarldental.com indicate that they are very satisfied with our family and cosmetic dentistry. A patient who received dental veneers last week called Dr. Clayton McCarl “Michelangelo of the mouth!”

McCarl dentists have been recognized for excellence in dental veneers which are thin, custom-made moldings that cover unattractive teeth. They are created from tooth-colored, high-tech materials to portray a bright, natural smile. No prep, minimal prep and traditional veneers cover unattractive gaps between teeth and cover stained misshapen or crooked teeth. Traditional dental veneers can transform even the darkest teeth to bright white. They are individually sculpted and it is almost impossible to tell the difference between a veneer and a natural tooth.

For traditional porcelain veneers, the face of the tooth is reshaped to allow for the added thickness of porcelain. In comparison to a crown, a minimal amount of the natural tooth must be altered for a veneer. At the Mccarl dental group, a digital image can be taken of the reshaped tooth and sent via high-speed internet to a dental laboratory where the veneer is custom-made for your mouth. If you receive a no prep or minimal prep veneer, no temporary is needed to cover the tooth while the veneer is being made. The veneer is permanently attached to the face of your tooth with adhesive material or cement which bonds it to the original tooth structure. With good care, veneers can last for ten to fifteen years or longer. Unlike most bonding materials, veneers are resistant to stains from coffee, tea and cigarettes. They will not change color over time. Because a small amount of tooth is reduced to fit traditional veneers, the process is not reversible. No prep veneers are placed on the original tooth structure and can be removed.

Patients with veneers still need to brush and floss regularly to maintain a healthy and beautiful smile. Veneers typically cannot be damaged by abrasion from your toothbrush or floss. As with natural teeth, patients with dental veneers are advised to avoid chewing fingernails or anything else that may cause the veneers to chip or crack. Remember: never use your teeth as tools!

Veneers used to be reserved for Hollywood movie stars and the rich and famous. Now you would be surprised how many of your neighbors achieved their beautiful smiles with veneers. Call McCarl Dental Group at 410-987-0870 or 301-474-4144 to find out if veneers are right for you.