Bangalore, Karnataka -- (SBWIRE) -- 03/26/2012 -- Even middle-aged women want to get cosmetic dental surgery done. The most sought-after procedures are veneer or lamination, and bleaching of teeth. Some procedures can change the alignment of teeth without the pain of wiring and braces, say doctors.

"Men today don't like a woman's smile which flashes the gums, like Madhuri Dixit's . They like Priyanka Chopra's smile, which shows only the teeth," said Dr Anuradha Navaneetham , medical director in charge of the Hosmat Dental Hospital.

"The science of dentistry has come a long way. When we have an option of correcting our smile, why not do it? Quite often, women are rejected by men because their teeth are not good," he adds.

The procedures are basic bonding with tooth-coloured restoration, sculpted to help close gaps between teeth.

Laminates and veneers, which are thin layers, are bonded on to the teeth. Also, teeth can be discoloured and bleached to get a pearly smile. This trend, popular in the US and European countries, is catching up fast in India. Gum lifts and stripping is done to change the gum line and the colour of gums, say doctors.

'' Gum showing or vertical maxillary excess, which is related to the height of the upper jaw, shows long and pale gums when one smiles. This condition is correctable either by veneer or by orthognathic surgery,'' said Dr Deepak S, consultant, maxillofacial surgeon and implantologist, Narayana Hrudayalaya.

Foreign Patients Fly In Too
As cosmetic dental surgeries and smile designing are costly affairs in western countries, people from the US, Europe, Africa and Arab countries are visiting India. '' The most challenging are African patients, who have big teeth with gaps. Arab women also prefer to undergo smile correction, oral jewellery (fixing an artificial diamond on a tooth) and dental implants, as it enhances the personality,'' said Dr Shraddha Bahirwani , consultant, dental medicine and aesthetic dentist, Manipal Hospital . '' Sometimes, I get mothers and daughters from Arab countries who undergo smile correction together,'' Bahirwani added.

Import A Smile
Young girls and men prefer to bleach their teeth as this makes teeth shiny white. "We get patients from rural areas, many of them girls, whose teeth becomes yellow because they drink well water. It contains toxins that can turn teeth dark yellow. This can be corrected by bleaching. Men prefer this to remove paan and gutka stains. The material used for designing smiles is sourced from European countries," says Dr Navaneetham.
Just Three Sittings

Well-known model Pashmina Barker has all the features fit for her profession, but she was very conscious of her smile. "One of my front teeth broke a few years ago, and two years ago, it also started discolouring. It looked ugly, and made me very conscious about my smile. I visited a dentist, who suggested that my problem could be solved with the help of aesthetic dental surgery and my smile could be redesigned according to my face. In just three sittings, my problem was solved, and I am now looking more beautiful."