A hygienist goes to Hollywood

Sure, I’ve dreamed about retiring from dentistry with perfect “Hollywood” teeth. In form and function, I’m in tiptop shape. But I am certainly not a magazine cover girl. Sometimes I wonder what my “smile line” will look like when I’m an old biddy in spite of my nightguard. I plead my vanity is genetic. My mother asked about braces to move one shifting lateral when she was 80.

Ear-to-ear vaneers

Recently, while watching a favorite actress in a 1999 movie, I couldn’t help but fixate on her overly dark bicuspids. They weren’t there for her last major film, and yet; even 20 years ago, she was certainly a millionaire. Have Hollywood’s demands for perfection changed? Perhaps she finally allowed herself to indulge in ear-to-ear veneers since she is now “of a certain age.”

I anticipated being in a New York Film Academy movie. What if that easy, broad smile of mine shows my amalgam-stained (and slightly lingually rotated) pesky bicuspid? Normally I would say, “Who cares!” But this is Tinseltown, where everyone is beautiful — even without airbrushing. Perhaps absolutely perfect ear-to-ear teeth would look too artificial. Would I loose my unique cultural characteristics? As the saying goes, I have the “map of Ireland on my face.”

Leprechaun ears notwithstanding, I decided to try out a temporary dive into the realm of perfection. Dr. Paul Ayotte of Clinton, Conn., fabricated a Snap On Smile (DenMat) for my big L.A. adventure. First an alginate impression was made as a study model to check my bite. Then a rubber-base-type material was used for a second impression, which was sent off via FedEx along with a shade and thickness choice.

Rent-a-smile

Two weeks later my new maxillary “smile line” arrived. Not quite ready to invest in 10 veneers, I’m willing to “rent” them via a temporary fix. Coworkers muttered, “Why are you doing this? I would kill for your teeth!” I could legitimately say that I was going to be in a student film in Hollywood; but really, I secretly wanted to know what I looked like with ear-to-ear veneers. I discuss cosmetic dentistry with my patients on a weekly basis, so why couldn’t I practice what I preach?

I brightened up my mandibular arch with Henry Shein’s new Sheer White whitening films. Great adhesion ensured that even the cuspids were up to OM1 within two hours. I expected sensitivity or gingival blanching with 20 percent carbamide peroxide, but there was none.

What I liked about my new “snappy teeth” was the even incisal line and the masked, dark bicuspid. What I didn’t like was the bulkiness of the cuspid and my shade choice. While it matched my lower arch, Denmat’s S1 (or OM1) looks better on natural teeth than it does on synthetic. The product is ideally suited for patients with esthetically unpleasant teeth or missing teeth. Perfect if they have a big occasion coming up and don’t wish to have extensive dental work. Sometimes even a dental professional needs a little visual motivation to get those permanent crowns done to mask the obvious.

My reinvented self after film boot camp has given me a fresh perspective on business appearances and stereotypes. The growing pains of the film industry, while making the switch from celluloid to digital, reminded me of our changes in dentistry. Older filmmakers resist the transition for artistic reasons but admit there are great cost-reduction benefits. Others insist the technology of digital will mature and the craft will maintain its artistic depth. I listened attentively as a cameraman spoke of the wrist pain he experiences using the smaller digital camera vs. the old shoulder-borne style. I’ve never had to hold a camera for hours, but wrist pain; I can relate to that.

I’m ready for my close-up now Mr. Spielberg. Perhaps our collaborative blockbuster film could be titled “Close Encounters of the 32 Kind.” My first student film can be found at www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvbWGPjus4g.

I opted for director in this one.

Note: This article was published in Hygiene Tribune U.S. Edition, Vol. 5, No. 5, June 2012.