Discrepancy is hardly a pleasant word. There might be a discrepancy between your and someone else's memory of an event. There might be a discrepancy between the amount of money someone earns and the amount of taxes that they pay. What about tooth size discrepancy? As you might have guessed, this is a dental condition that involves your teeth being different sizes that are not proportionate to each other. If this describes your teeth, what are your options for correcting this discrepancy?

Although tooth size discrepancy can affect your overall dental health, it's primarily a cosmetic issue, and this means that you will need to see a cosmetic dentist. Here are some options they might offer:

A Height Reduction

The best solution will depend on the size of your tooth discrepancy, as well as the general health of your teeth and gums. The easiest solution is to simply reduce the height of the adjacent teeth. A dentist may use a small sanding disc to remove a tiny amount of the vertical dimensions of these adjacent teeth. This is known as teeth recontouring and is only appropriate when a minor adjustment needs to be made. 

A Height Increase

When altering the vertical dimensions of your teeth will affect the way your face looks, your cosmetic dentist can also opt to go in the other direction, and increase the height of the adjacent teeth. Sometimes reducing the height of teeth can cause your face to look sunken, so this must be avoided if it's thought to be a likely outcome. Your dentist may apply a tooth-colored composite resin to the appropriate teeth before shaping it. The resulting work is then quick-dried using a special light, and your tooth size discrepancy has been corrected.

Dental Crowns

When the structure of your teeth means that any reduction or addition to their height will be unlikely to succeed, you might require a more straightforward solution. Dental crowns can be applied to all relevant teeth to achieve uniformity of size. This can be the best course of action when it's thought that altering the height of your teeth could create additional problems for your future dental health.

Tooth size discrepancy is not a discrepancy you have to live with, so if the uneven sizes of your teeth have been a cause of concern, make an appointment at your preferred cosmetic dentistry office. Contact a cosmetic dentist for more information.