I have one peg lateral tooth and it really bothers me. I hate the way it makes my smile look so I never smile in pictures. Someone mentioned to me that I might be able to get this fixed with dental bonding and I wanted to know if that was accurate before I get my hopes up too much.
Carly
Dear Carly,
What Are Peg Laterals?
I am going to answer your question, but not many readers will know what a peg lateral is, so I will start with that. Peg laterals are a genetic malformation of the developing tooth, which essentially means the tooth does not fully develop. As a result, the teeth look smaller than the other teeth and sometimes can even be pointy.
Can Dental Bonding Work?
For those who may not know what dental bonding is I have a picture directly above of one of its most common uses. Dental bonding uses a composite resin in order to replace missing tooth structures. It is used to fix chipped teeth, gapped teeth, divots, and much more.
In answer to your question, yes, dental bonding can fix the peg lateral. Your dentist will fill the area with the composite material that is shaded to match your tooth, then it will be appropriately shaped, adjusted, polished, and smoothed. If done correctly, it will match your bite perfectly.
You Have Options
Another solution for peg laterals is to have dental crowns placed over them. Often there is so much structure missing that you don’t even need a lot of tooth preparation. Because the crowns are made from porcelain, they are more stain resistant than the composite bonding. I’d advise the crown as your first option, but if you are opposed to them, then getting bonding done is a great second choice.
Make sure the dentist you go to have this procedure done is experienced in dental bonding and can show you before and after images of cases he’s done, similar to the photo I posted above. Dental bonding is a tricky procedure that has to be done free hand. There is no try in for the results the way you would get with dental crowns.
This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.