Why Dental Implants Are Better than Traditional Restorations

Dental implants offer several key benefits over other restorative treatment options, and they are designed to deliver a lifetime of consistent performance for the patient. Simply put, dental implants set the standard for treatment when a patient is faced with one or more missing teeth.

While dentures and bridges are still in use today, individuals who want to truly restore their mouth and smile tend to seek a dentist who offers dental implants as a treatment option. At the Pasadena dental office of Monique Y. Perez, DDS, you’ll have access to dental implant restorations that can improve your quality of life and create the smile you’ve always wanted.

Why dental implants?

Dental implants are the next best thing to natural, healthy teeth. Unlike dentures or bridges that can shift in place or degrade over time, dental implants are permanently affixed to the jawbone using a titanium base. This replacement tooth root and the cosmetic restoration it supports make dental implants feel like natural teeth. The post being surgically placed within the jaw also avoids the bulky nature of traditional restorations, allowing you to eat, talk, and smile as if your original teeth were still in place.

What are the benefits of dental implants?

Dental implants feature numerous benefits when compared to their traditional restorations. Implants enable you to eat hard or chewy foods without worrying about loose dentures or bridges. Dental implants also won’t cover the roof of the mouth as traditional dentures will, so you can taste that food more easily. The natural appearance and texture of dental implant restorations makes your replacement teeth look and feel like real teeth, further improving your self-esteem. Traditional restorations do mimic the appearance of a naturally healthy smile as well, but they tend to feel bulky within the mouth, reminding the wearer of their presence. Traditional restorations can even cause speech impediments, a problem avoided by having dental implants instead.

Dental implants are a long-term solution that can last the lifetime of the patient. Unlike dentures or bridges, which tend to need adjustment between five to ten years after installation, dental implants can deliver decades of use so long as healthy oral habits are maintained. The titanium implant bases actually fuse to the jawbone as well to create a rigid and durable base for your new implanted teeth.

Dental implants will also protect the health and strength of your jaw bone. When teeth are missing from the jaw, the bone no longer has anything to support and will degrade over time, thinning the bone and giving the appearance of premature aging. The implants provide something for the jawbone to reinforce and so stimulate natural bone growth.


To see if you are a candidate for dental implants, contact the Pasadena dental office of Monique Y. Perez, DDS today. We look forward to discussing the benefits of dental implants with you!

Modern Teeth Whitening Options for Today’s Dental Patient

When making the decision to whiten your teeth, it is important to consider the benefits of the variety of whitening kits available today. From those that can be taken home and used on your own time to in-office whitening procedures that are handled by a cosmetic dental professional, you have multiple paths to a beautiful and healthy smile. At the Pasadena dental office of Monique Y. Perez, DDS, you’ll find that our approach to teeth whitening will help you to discover the smile you’ve always wanted.

The Benefits of Whitening

Teeth whitening offers several unique benefits, including:

Improving Dental Appearance: If you want more beautiful teeth, you can generally have them through whitening! One huge way to improve an individual’s overall look is by enhancing their smile, and teeth whitening is an affordable and effective way to do so.

Boosting Self-Confidence: A bright, healthy smile can improve one’s sense of confidence and self-worth. Teeth whitening has become incredibly popular today and easily lifts the spirits of most patients.

Creating a Youthful Look: Yellowed or otherwise discolored teeth can contribute to an “old” or “weathered” look, while natural-looking, bright white teeth can minimize the appearance of facial wrinkles and may actually reduce the perceived age of the patient.

Our Teeth Whitening Options

At our Pasadena dental office, you can opt for a take home teeth whitening system, Zoom!, or the in-office Opalescence treatment.

Zoom! comes in a procedure kit with disposable components. If used as instructed, Zoom! can deliver professional-level results in a significantly shorter amount of time than other whitening products. Though most dental professionals can more effectively whiten teeth when patients visit the office, this system is a terrific option for those who want to whiten on their own time.

The Opalescence system is also a professional-grade teeth whitening option for patients who prefer that Dr. Perez directly help them brighten their smile. The solution this system uses includes a desensitizing agent to enhance comfort. The solution also includes fluoride to strengthen teeth, helping you develop your smile's health and beauty at once.

To help you decide which option is best for you, contact Monique Y. Perez, DDS today. You can schedule a consultation that can lead to a brighter, whiter, and healthier looking smile!

Lumineers® vs. Traditional Porcelain Veneers

Creating a beautiful and healthy smile is now a reality thanks to sophisticated veneer options available from Monique Y. Perez, DDS.

With a history as far back as the early Twentieth Century, veneers are now an incredibly popular cosmetic dental treatment. Our Pasadena dentist, Dr. Perez, offers veneers which can dramatically improve the look of existing teeth. But patients do have choices when it comes to dental veneers – Lumineers® or Traditional Porcelain Veneers. Here is a brief overview of both:

Lumineers: In short, Lumineers® are a thinner, lighter, simpler version of the traditional porcelain veneer. They are constructed of a porcelain material called Cerinate®, which provides more durability with less material used, and end up being no thicker than a contact lens. Lumineers® can be applied without local anesthesia, as the process does not require the grinding and sanding associated with traditional veneers. Lumineers® offer some cosmetic correction for misaligned teeth and gaps in the smile, but traditional options often support greater freedom when it comes to creating the ideal smile. Lumineers® are thinner than regular veneers, requiring a greater degree of accuracy and craftsmanship on the part of our Pasadena dentist.

Traditional Porcelain Veneers: Veneers are constructed of rugged and attractive, medical-grade porcelain. The thickness of traditional veneers require some irreversible removal of existing, healthy tooth material to ensure a consistent bond. Just as with Lumineers®, traditional veneers are individually crafted for each patient. The result is a lifelike appearance that looks perfectly matched to the cosmetic dental needs of the individual.

Which option is better? While there are certainly benefits inherent to both options, the best course of action is to schedule a consultation with a cosmetic dental professional who can help to identify the right option for you. Regardless of the chosen method, patients must have good overall oral health in order to receive veneers. Veneers patients will generally have chips or cracks in existing teeth, or may be suffering from teeth alignment issues, discoloration, or gaps in the teeth that can be addressed using either Lumineers® or traditional porcelain veneers.

For more information on veneers and other cosmetic dental treatment options, contact the Pasadena dental office of Monique Y. Perez, DDS today!