| System Offers a True View of Cosmetic Dental Changes |
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From: The Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago, IL
March 31, 1999
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Many people are self-conscious about their teeth and their smile, but are hesitant to agree to
cosmetic dentistry because they're unsure of the results. A new computer system takes away that uncertainty.
Dr. Robert Heller, a dentist from Birmingham, Mich., is among the first to have the new system, called
Smilevision.
"For years we spent hours explaining what the options were and how a patient's teeth could look, but it
was hard for them to visualize," Heller said. "Now, we can show them definitively what the results will be."
Smilevision uses a digital video camera to capture an image of the patient's teeth. That image is then
sent by modem to Boston.
There inventor Dr. Lawrence Brooks and his team of experts alter the image and reconstruct the teeth via
computer, taking into account the patient's concerns, yellowing, uneven teeth, for example, or teeth that
are too far apart or too small.
In about at week, the patient receives before and after photographs at home showing what his or her teeth
could look like after cosmetic procedures.
Smilevision is different from other kinds of computer imaging in that it uses the patient's own teeth in the
after images. Other imaging systems simply insert an image of a model's teeth into the patient's photograph,
making it hard to imagine what the patient's teeth would really look like.
"The patients are able to really know how they'll look, and they get excited," Heller said.
The other benefit of the procedure is that since the patient receives the results, he or she examines the
image at his or her leisure at home and doesn't feel pressured to agree to anything on the spot, Heller said.
"It's really a terrific thing for the patients."
Smilevision costs $50.00, which can be applied to the price of the cosmetic procedures.
For information, check the Smilevision Web site at www.smilevision.com or call (800)634-3480.
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