My first Magazine | Page 52

AESTHETIC DENTISTRY

WHO IS THE FACIAL SPECIALIST ? HYALURONIC ACID FILLERS : OPTIMISATION OF AESTHETIC DENTISTRY AND PATIENT LOYALTY
Aldo Zupi 1a *
1
Libera Università Internazionale del Benessere , Rome , Italy a
MD , DDS , MSci , PhD
Received : August 24 , 2016 Accepted : August 25 , 2016
Available online : September 07 , 2016
Cite this article : Zupi A . Who is the facial specialist ? Hyaluronic acid fillers : optimisation of aesthetic dentistry and patient loyalty . Stoma Edu J . 2016 ; 3 ( 2 ): 168-177 .
ABSTRACT
The hyaluronic acid is the most used filler for the correction of facial wrinkles . The filler procedure is relatively painless and virtually free of complications and side effects . It requires deep knowledge of the face anatomy and its tissues , understanding of the skin physiology , excellent knowledge of injection techniques , ability to empathise with the patient and aesthetic sensibility . Dentists are the most facilitated specialists in this field . They have great knowledge of facial anatomy with its skeletal , muscular , vascular and nervous structure and , in addition , they master , better than anyone else , the injection technique . Face and smile are indivisible units . No facial aesthetic treatment would be completely satisfactory if it did not involve the care of the teeth and smile . The clinical approach proposed here aims to gain the tools to integrate the examination of the soft tissue of the face , with their anatomic and functional characteristics , in the dentists ’ routine . Through this approach we can decode , simplify and make possible the harmony , complex and unique , of the faces of our patients . The final aim is to increase the services and the therapeutic options offered with the integration of perioral soft tissue treatment protocol to common approach to classic dentistry . Keywords : Esthetic , Dental ; Dermal fillers ; Hyaluronic acid
1 . Introduction The analysis that each one of us performs in the clinic routine highlights the aspects that we know we can improve with the old or new techniques at our disposal . When we look at someone ’ s face , we focus on some details based on our profession , our passion and sometimes , our desires . A hairstylist will be driven to observe the quality of a haircut , for instance . In the same way , a make-up artist will evaluate the way in which someone is wearing make up . Instinctively , she will think what product that person used and how good it is and if it suits the subject . A stylist will notice the accessory and clothes a person is wearing . He might even judge the taste of that person . A dentist , who loves his job , will always focus his attention to someone ’ s smile and mouth . He will start thinking of a treatment for that person . Moreover , the facial analysis performed by the prosthodontics is different from the one performed by the dentist and different from what the maxillofacial or plastic surgeon analyse . Still different , it is the analysis performed by dermatologists or medical aesthetics . This confirms the phrase : “ what we see depends mainly on what we look for ” 1 . Our eyes look for what we desire and they only see what we are able to understand . John Lubbock said that . He was a banker , liberal politician , philanthropist and scientist . He was influential in the nineteenthcentury ’ s debates concerning evolutionary theory 2 . This quote is very appropriate for our case , because “ what we see depends on what we can offer to the patient ”. To improve the aspect of a person , dentists are always able to evaluate the quality of the teeth alignment and eventually propose almost invisible dental treatments . Also , decayed or damaged teeth can be cured or replaced . Whitening treatments are always more efficient and less aggressive on the teeth . It is time for the dentist to start working on the frame of the smile too , which makes it healthy and beautiful . The patient often implicitly requires this . Sometimes , however , the patient makes this request explicitly . So , as dentists , we cannot say no ! It is a duty and also an opportunity for us . Patients , more often now , ask for rejuvenation injection procedures for their face . At the end of the nineties , the majority of patients who asked for an aesthetic treatment preferred surgical procedures ( more than 55 %) 3 . Now , this balance is completely inverted . In 2015 , slightly less than 90 % of patients
* Corresponding author :
Aldo Zupi , MD DDS MSci PhD . Via Zabarella 64 , 35122 Padova , Italy e-mail : zupiland @ hotmail . com

168 STOMA . EDUJ ( 2016 ) 3 ( 2 )