Digital technology is one of the most widely used tools in dentistry today. Thanks to it, dentistry has achieved much greater precision and predictability compared to conventional techniques.
The Digital Smile Design (DSD) responds to the digital design of a future smile as a diagnostic element and at the same time the final purpose of the treatment.
By using standardized photographs and 3D scans obtained during the study visit, we can digitize the patient in a few seconds. This step will allow us, by means of different computer programs, to be able to design the desired smile without the need to visit the patient again.
Following already established esthetic parameters, the position, length, shape and color of the teeth can be modified to match the patient’s smile.
We look for an exposure of the upper central corresponding to the patient’s age, with aesthetic dimensions proportional to the rest of the face. This exposure will be between 1-4mm depending on the age, sex, labial mobility…
With this reference it is possible to position the rest of the teeth of the upper arch, following as a reference the lower lip in a social smile and the correct position in the upper occlusal plane.
This simulation can be superimposed on the photographs taken during the study visit and thus virtually achieve the final treatment objectives.
Subsequently, this digital study mock-up is transferred to the patient in the form of a trial (called a mock-up). Thus, the patient can see in a physical, real and dynamic way the aesthetic proposal of the future treatment.
The patient can see and understand better, all the modifications that we must make (through orthodontics, prosthesis…) to achieve that ideal design.