COSMETIC PROCEDURES

All our services are geared to provide attractive, comfortable and functional results.
Read More

---

RESTORATIVE PROCEDURES

We practice conservative dentistry, catching and correcting problems while they're still small.
Read More

---

TMJ TREATMENTS

Our TMJ Treatments help correct pain from migraines, teeth grinding, clenching, locking jaw and other related symptoms.
Read More

---

Questions?
Ask Dr. Katz Comments / Questions

* - Required Fields

Cosmetic Dentistry

Serving Arlington, VA

The dental profession has developed hugely in recent years, thanks to such technical advances as computers and lasers. A cosmetic dentist like Dr. Katz will often continue to practice general dentistry, using modern methods and technology, but will also practice cosmetic dentistry, adding innovative new techniques and offering new procedures which not only keep your teeth healthy, but beautify them as well.

What is Cosmetic Dentistry?

Most of us are not born with perfect teeth, and even if we are, we all tend to work our teeth hard, and sometimes neglect their care.

• Preventive dentistry helps to maintain our natural teeth
• Restorative dentistry helps to rebuild damaged or defective teeth
• Cosmetic dentistry addresses the remaining work, that of maximizing the attractiveness of our teeth

Advances in comfort and pain control

The days are long gone when the dentist started work by approaching you with a giant needle. Modern dentistry is essentially pain-free from start to finish.

• To administer anesthetic, Dr. Katz uses a Wand, which is a computer-assisted, painless, and very precise method of numbing your mouth in the area where work is to be done
• You can also choose to have Nitrous Oxide (laughing gas) to calm any anxiety that may still remain
• You can choose to have Sedation Dentistry, where Dr. Katz will prescribe a sedating medication which you can take before you come to your appointment. You’ll need someone to drive you to and from our office, and you’ll be drowsy throughout, recalling little of the whole experience.

Cosmetic Dentistry Procedures

Invisalign™ Orthodontics

No more must we endure that old embarrassment of adolescence, wearing metal braces for 2 or 3 years to get our teeth straightened.

Although ceramic braces (white in color, small and discreet), are one option, many people choose to go the Invisalign™ route. Instead of permanently affixed braces, you receive customized trays for your teeth. There’s a series of them, each one gently making your teeth straighter.

You can remove these trays any time, to clean your teeth, to take a short rest from the soft pressure they exert, or to go out for dinner with that special person.

Back to Top

Porcelain veneers

When our teeth are crooked, we will not necessarily need braces any more. Dr. Katz can examine your teeth to see whether porcelain veneers will do the job instead.

Porcelain veneers are thin ceramic wafers, custom made for your teeth. They’re permanently bonded, often on the top front teeth. They can cover a variety of small defects, such as:

• Stains and spots
• Chips
• Slight crookedness

They look, feel, and function just like your natural teeth.

More on porcelain veneers

Teeth whitening

Although you can buy “whitening” toothpaste and generic tooth whitening systems over the counter, significant teeth whitening can only be done by your cosmetic dentist.

Dr. Katz uses the Zoom!™ system, which can be done in about an hour in his office, or at home over a couple of weeks.

More on teeth whitening

Porcelain crowns, inlays and onlays

Many of us have old-style metal fillings, which:

• Were never bonded to the tooth, but just sit in the cavity and can therefore become loose
• Look unsightly and can even stain the whole tooth
• Contain mercury, which some think is harmful to the whole body

In contrast, dental porcelain is a translucent white substance that mimics natural teeth in appearance. It can be used to upgrade the old metal fillings, to fill cavities and irregularities, and to form crowns over teeth that are too decayed to hold a filling.

More about porcelain crowns, inlays and onlays

Laser tissue contouring

Sometimes a person’s smile looks “gummy”, or their teeth look too short, and this can be remedied by the use of a dental laser beam.

In one visit, Dr. Katz can reshape the gums around your front teeth, revealing more of your natural teeth and making your smile more even and proportional.

Laser tissue contouring is done with anesthetic, so is not painful, and recovery is quick because the laser seals the tissue closed, to prevent infection.

Back to Top

Extreme Smile Makeover

If you feel unhappy with your teeth in general, and with your smile, contact Dr. Katz for a consultation. He can assess your whole dental status and suggest some options for improving it. An extreme smile makeover is a customized sequence of procedures designed to improve or correct each aspect of your smile. It could be any combination of the above procedures, as well as any other work that you and Dr. Katz decide on.

Cosmetic dentistry questions

For a bright, more confident new smile, consider cosmetic dentistry. If you live in or around Arlington or Herndon, VA, contact Dr. Katz today and schedule a Free Smile Evaluation. He’ll listen to your concerns, answer your cosmetic dentistry questions, and together you can decide on the best course of action.

703.478.9574