What is a mock-up, exactly?
A mock-up is a thin shell of tooth-colored resin (a plastic filling material), shaped to the planned design and pressed over your natural teeth for the length of a visit. Nothing is drilled and nothing is bonded. It shows the length, width and outline of the proposed teeth, where the edges sit against your lip, and how the smile fits your face. It does not show the final shade or the surface detail of porcelain, and it says nothing about how long the finished work will last.
A mock-up is most useful when several front teeth are being changed, or when the look of the result is the main reason for treatment.
What happens at the first visit?
The first visit is for records.
- Photographs of your face and your smile, at rest and in conversation.
- A digital scan of the upper and lower teeth.
- A bite record, so the upper and lower teeth are related correctly, and a facebow or its digital equivalent, which records how the upper jaw sits in the face.
- X-rays where the teeth or roots need checking.
From these records the new teeth are designed tooth by tooth in dental design software, checked against your bite and jaw joints as well as your lip line. If a bite problem or jaw pain is part of the picture, it is diagnosed before the design is finalized.
What happens at the second visit?
The design is 3D-printed into a model in our office. From the model we make a silicone key, a soft mold of the new tooth shapes. At the chair the key is filled with a fast-setting resin and seated over your teeth. You hold it for a few minutes; when the key comes off, the mock-up stays on your teeth.
Then take your time. Look in the mirror, in daylight and under room lights. Say a few sentences; the length of the upper front teeth changes how certain sounds feel. Smile, laugh, relax your lips. Bring someone whose opinion you trust. If an edge should be shorter or a corner rounder, we adjust it on the spot.
When you are satisfied, the mock-up is photographed and recorded, and that approved shape becomes the blueprint for the temporary teeth and the final veneers or crowns. The mock-up then lifts off and the residue is brushed away.
Does it hurt or damage the teeth?
No tooth is prepared or polished for a mock-up. There is no numbing and no recovery.
Is the mock-up what the final result will look like?
It is a close guide to shape and proportion, which is what most people worry about. Shade, translucency and gum contour are refined in the temporary and final stages, and the final teeth are made by a laboratory to the approved design. A mock-up reduces surprises; it does not remove every variable, and we tell you when something in your case cannot be shown this way.
In some plans the second visit is combined with other steps, such as placing temporary veneers or crowns, or removing a tooth that cannot be saved. We tell you in advance what the visit will include, and nothing is added without your agreement.
Read more about smile design and porcelain veneers.
When to call us
Call us if you are planning veneers or crowns on the front teeth and want to see the proposed shape before committing, or if you want a second opinion on a design made elsewhere.
Sources
About the author: Dr. Baruch Tetri, DDS, is a periodontist. He earned his DDS at NYU College of Dentistry in 2006, completed his Certificate in Periodontics in 2009, and is a Diplomate of the American Board of Periodontology.