Is teeth bonding a good idea? What to do after aligner treatment

Clear aligners are used to straighten smiles, but what if tooth shape gives the illusion that teeth aren’t straight even after treatment? Additional changes with teeth bonding can be a great solution! In this blog, Dr. Aalok Y. Shukla explains what composite bonding is and how tooth bonding can be used to further harmonise your smile.

What is teeth bonding?

First, let’s answer the question “What is teeth bonding?” Simple! Cosmetic teeth bonding is a non-invasive procedure performed in clinics to restore the shape of teeth that are chipped or have uneven edges. To do so, a tooth coloured composite resin is attached to the tooth and hardened with UV light. In short, material is added to the teeth, not removed, to correct physical imperfections.

Why is it necessary?

Teeth can chip or wear down differently over time, often due to their misaligned position. Aligners straighten your teeth, moving them from their original position into an optimally aligned one, but they don’t repair chipped or worn down teeth. So, when you come to the end of straightening, you may need some additional bonding to fix the shape of your teeth.

Tooth shapes and crooked teeth illusion: after treatment problems

As we have just seen, the shape of your teeth after alignment may still be uneven, which can cause your smile to appear crooked while actually being aligned. Uneven tooth shape can be caused by chips and wear, but it can also be natural. 

There are 3 main tooth shapes – square, oval and triangular – and teeth can appear more crooked in triangular teeth. The fact that triangular teeth have a wider top edge and a narrower base can also create black triangles (small gaps between teeth) once they are perfectly aligned.

So, now that we know uneven teeth edges (whether natural or worn down) can influence smile appearance, here’s an example of a completely aligned smile that doesn’t look that straight:

Using cosmetic teeth bonding, teeth can be fine tuned to make uneven teeth even again, fixing the teeth edges and creating an optimally straight smile.

So…do you really need cosmetic teeth bonding?

The short answer: maybe! If your teeth shape is uneven, you may require some minor cosmetic teeth bonding after straightening treatment to really get the full effect of your straightest smile. In some mild cases of misaligned teeth, your dentist may even be able to use bonding instead of aligners altogether. For instance, if there’s a small gap between teeth, a dentist can camouflage it with cosmetic teeth bonding. 

The bottom line is: no two sets of teeth are the same – every smile is unique and should be treated as such during any orthodontic treatment. Make sure your treatment provider understands your individual needs so that they can give your the best solution for your ideal smile result!