Perfect smile

Aug 8 2009 by Liz Lamb, The Journal

A smile can light up a room, but what happens when your teeth leave you lacking in confidence? Liz Lamb speaks to two people whose appearances have been transformed with a new set of pearly whites

OLIVER LODGE

IF you ever spotted marketing assistant Oliver Lodge in a photograph you’d notice one thing – he never smiled. The 20-year-old, from Gateshead, was so self-conscious about his teeth, he would often hide his mouth with his hand and whenever a friend took a photograph he would refuse to smile.

He says: “I didn’t feel as confident as I could have. In photographs, everyone would be smiling and people would say to me ‘Come on, smile’ but I just didn’t want to. I just felt like it was something that bothered me. If I was getting ready to go out, I would look in the mirror and wish I looked better.”

Oliver was suffering from overbite, a common orthodontic condition, where the front teeth overlap the lower teeth excessively and cause improper functioning and an unnatural appearance of the front teeth.

After being refused treatment on the NHS, Oliver turned to The Cosmetic Dental Clinic to discuss his options there.

“The NHS said to me that they thought other people had far worse teeth than I did,” says Oliver. “I knew it wasn’t serious, but I personally felt I had the worst teeth out of all my friends and I wanted it put right.”

Oliver had been unhappy with his teeth from a young age and had wanted a brace fitted when he was 10 years old, but growing up in Hong Kong, his parents could not afford the procedure. He says: “The prices in Hong Kong were astronomical, so when I moved to the UK I decided to do something about it, as it was much more affordable here.

“I did a bit of research and could have gone for normal braces, but there were things, like not being able to eat certain foods because of the wires and the way it looked, that put me off.

“I wanted something where I didn’t have to drastically change my appearance.”

Oliver opted for the Invisalign treatment at the Cosmetic Dental Clinic as an alternative to braces.

Instead of the traditional metal “train track” look, the aligners used were clear and could be removed to brush and floss the teeth.

Dr Darren Cannell, co-founder of the clinic, says: “Invisalign is a series of clear, removable, plastic aligners that are custom-made for the patient’s teeth.

“We use advanced 3D computer technology in the clinic to create a model of the mouth and teeth.

“The beauty of this treatment is that clients can actually view and help agree what their final smile is going to look like.

“Once agreed, a series of clear aligners are custom-made to manoeuvre the teeth to the ideal position.

Ten months and £2,000 later, Oliver’s overbite was rectified and he is much more comfortable and confident with his smile.

He says: “I love smiling, and I love being photographed. People are commenting now that I have a perfect smile and that is so nice to hear. It’s something I have never been told before.

“I feel much more confident and I don’t have to hide my mouth with my hand any more.

“I love showing off my new smile.”

For further information about Invisalign visit www.thecosmeticdentalclinic.com or call (0191) 260-3688.