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Reason to smile: Innovative treatment straightens, reshapes and whitens teeth at the same time

The Straight White Teeth (SWT) procedure aims to close gaps, align and brighten teeth with one to two visits to the dentist

Feel more confident about your smile with the SmileQuik Straight White Teeth (SWT) procedure, which can treat different dental conditions in one procedure. PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES

With working from home becoming more prevalent as workplaces evolve to adopt a hybrid model where online meetings are the norm, the focus on one's face and smile is even more paramount than ever before. If crooked, irregular or discoloured teeth are affecting your confidence and the way you smile, and you're looking for an effective treatment to deal with these issues quickly, this may be designed for you.

Dr Ernest Rex Tan, the founder and director of Smile Inc Dental Surgeons, shares: "A large number of patients who come to see me are adults with different conditions who want to improve their smiles; and they seek an alternative to braces and aligners."

As a dentist, Dr Tan, who's been in practice for nearly 30 years, sees his fair share of dental conditions including crooked, crowded, or misshapen teeth, disproportionately sized teeth, large gaps between teeth, discolouration, and gums that show too much when a person smiles.

With a background in restorative dentistry, and specialising in prosthodontics, a branch of dentistry that deals with prosthetics, Dr Tan has patients who have more than one of these conditions they want addressed.

While braces and aligners are the typical methods to adjust crooked teeth, they do not address other problems such as misshapen, disproportionately sized and asymmetrically shaped teeth or teeth discolouration, says Dr Tan. "Even with patients who have worn braces and aligners and had their teeth aligned, they still had these issues that were not addressed and thus did not achieve their best possible smile.

Moreover, Dr Tan explains that patients need to be consistent with using aligners and have to be disciplined to wear them throughout the treatment period (which could go up to two or more years). Non compliance in wearing the aligners or braces will prolong the treatment time and cause their dental condition to regress. "It can be sometimes frustrating for patients when they see no certainty or completion," he adds.

With these in mind and with his expertise on reconstructive and cosmetic dentistry, Dr Tan devised the SmileQuik Straight White Teeth (SWT) procedure in 1996.

Customised procedure to correct various dental conditions

The SWT procedure is designed to correct a range of conditions with just one procedure. This includes treatment for problems such as crooked front teeth, gaps between the front teeth, protrusion, rotated front teeth, disproportionately-sized teeth, asymmetrically-shaped or positioned teeth, sharp-fanged front teeth, jagged incisor teeth, collapsed front teeth, or missing teeth.

The SWT procedure can correct a range of conditions, from crooked front teeth and gaps between the front teeth to disproportionately-sized teeth and missing teeth. PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES

As each person's smile is different and requires different solutions, Dr Tan works on customising the procedure to a patient's needs using a combination of techniques and methods. This could involve contouring the teeth to reshape them, or applying materials such as porcelain and resin to shape the teeth and smile so that they look symmetrical and proportionate.

"I first try to understand the patients' concerns and advise which options would be most effective in addressing them, and whether they need a one or two visit procedure," explains Dr Tan.

"For the single-visit procedure, material is added and the teeth are contoured where needed. It is a non-invasive and quick procedure with no down time. The aesthetic parameters I look at are symmetry, harmony, brightness, proportion, shape of teeth and profile of smile," he adds.

There is also little to mild discomfort for the patient as the procedure is performed on the surface of the teeth. In more extensive conditions, where the patient has multiple conditions to address, local anaesthesia may be used to ensure optimal comfort for the patient.

Dr Tan adds: "As the procedure does not require surgery or extractions, there is no trauma to the bone or soft tissues and, hence, no bleeding, swelling and pain associated with surgery."

The SWT procedure results in teeth that are not only straighter but also more stain resistant. PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES

Compared to wearing braces or aligners, which may take one to two years of consistent wearing of aligners or wires to see results, the SWT procedure needs around one to two hours and may take one or two visits. Those with more complex conditions and multiple aesthetic challenges to address may require up to four visits.

Results: Straighter, more stain-resistant teeth

A week after the procedure, patients go for a 20- to 30-minute follow-up visit to ensure they are satisfied and comfortable with the result.

The procedure results in teeth that are more stain resistant because they have an extra layer of porcelain and resin applied over them. However, Dr Tan advises going for regular dental checkups to maintain good oral hygiene and dental health, and also to refrain from biting on hard food such as ice cubes or crab shells.

One of the questions he often gets asked by patients is whether their teeth would revert to their original positions after the procedure. Dr Tan says this will not be the case as "the teeth have been only reshaped and not moved".

What changes, though, is the attitude he sees in his patients after the procedure has been completed. Dr Tan says: "After the procedure, some of them have a big positive change in their outlook and confidence level. They tend to smile more and their friends and family can't tell what it is about them that has changed, but they themselves know that it is their improved smile."

For more information, call 6733 0660 (Mandarin Gallery)/ 6636 1366 (One Raffles Place) or visit www.smileinc.com.sg and https://smileinc.com.sg/our-services/aesthetic-dental-services/

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