Celebrity Dental Pathology

[Revellian]

Anybody else find themselves studying people for pathology? I do it all the time now, especially after having finished our sequence of oral pathology courses. When I watch movies, I find myself studying some of the details of celebrity's smiles that I never noticed before. So without further ado, here's a list of actors/actresses/singers that I've noticed have some sort of dental pathology. Please feel free to add to the list:

Tom Cruise: The man has a midline discrepancy of about 6mm. I'd like to give him a Le Forte I and rotate that sucker about 20 degrees so that his maxilla lines up with the rest of his face. It's all I can look at anytime he opens his mouth.

Joaquin Phoenix: As far as I can tell, he looks to have a incomplete unilateral cleft lip, and a peg lateral on the same side. I was distracted the whole time I watched Gladiator. I couldn't help but stare at his lip. He has said in interviews that he never had a cleft lip as a baby, so an incomplete cleft would make sense.

Jodie Foster: I think she has a right peg lateral. It's about 1/4 the size of her central.

Kirsten Dunst: Class II Div II malocclusion.

Elliot Yamin: As was mentioned in another thread, he appears to be missing both lateral incisors giving him a very narrow arch. I can't tell from pictures, but it wouldn't surprise me if he had a bilateral crossbite.

Jewel: She’s got a major snaggle tooth. Her teeth seem fairly straight with the exception of her fang-like #6. That tooth scares me.

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[aphistis]

I don't think I would classify any of those as "pathology," but I see what you're saying on all of them.

 

[crazy_sherm]

I don't think I would classify any of those as "pathology," but I see what you're saying on all of them.

Hey, remember this is LA. Not looking "beautiful" is as good as having a disease.

 

[Revellian]

I don't think I would classify any of those as "pathology," but I see what you're saying on all of them.

I tried, but I couldn't find a celebrity with a hemangioma. So I had to settle for ones that need some serious ortho. I should have named the thread "Celebrity Ortho Pathology."

 

[ca_dreamin']

Hey, remember this is LA. Not looking "beautiful" is as good as having a disease.

(although I do agree that these things probably would not really be called pathological in nature)

This does bring up an interesting point though: If a person presented in your office like one of the above photos, and, let's say they did not have any pathology, caries, etc. after evaluation... how ethical do you think it is to treat for esthetic reasons only, altering their occlusion, etc?

I'm just curious because it seems like there is an increasing division in philosophies between those who think it is important to cater to the public and their desire for the perfect smile, and then on the other side of the fence, those who think that the credibility of our profession depends on the dentist to focus strictly on disease prevention, reversal, and so on.

 

[ca_dreamin']

Add to the list: Katie Couric (#8 and 9). Probably 6-11 actually.

http://www.geocities.com/couric_fan/gallery/image20.jpg

(sorry, I could not figure out how to put just the picture in here...and by the way, I am not in the couric fan club if you are looking at the link!)

 

[DrJeff]

1 word, Jewel! Although normally a blocked out lateral would catch my attention, but the rest of her takes my attention away 😀

Also, anyone ever manage to look at Laetia Casta's mouth?? Where would you start with that one! 🙄 😱 😀 😉

 

[aphistis]

I tried, but I couldn't find a celebrity with a hemangioma. So I had to settle for ones that need some serious ortho. I should have named the thread "Celebrity Ortho Pathology."

Touche!

 

[sportsgirl]

I'm just curious because it seems like there is an increasing division in philosophies between those who think it is important to cater to the public and their desire for the perfect smile, and then on the other side of the fence, those who think that the credibility of our profession depends on the dentist to focus strictly on disease prevention, reversal, and so on.

In my view--though i am not a dentist (hope to be--so take it as it is) --No one has the perfect smile--a smile adds character, flaws and all. A smile is priceless, (insert mastercard commercial here) but i mean--we shouldn't be able to flat out say--my teeth cost me so much money, now they are perfect. I don't think dentists should be influencing the drive for the perfect smile in their clinics--they are health care professionals(in my opinion). Yes, confidence is key, the whole "Smile. Increase your face value." is obviously true--and a Dentists job to help people with confidence is important.
But I think a dentist should not see imperfections in ones smile but character.

 

[gryffindor]

(although I do agree that these things probably would not really be called pathological in nature)

This does bring up an interesting point though: If a person presented in your office like one of the above photos, and, let's say they did not have any pathology, caries, etc. after evaluation... how ethical do you think it is to treat for esthetic reasons only, altering their occlusion, etc?

I'm just curious because it seems like there is an increasing division in philosophies between those who think it is important to cater to the public and their desire for the perfect smile, and then on the other side of the fence, those who think that the credibility of our profession depends on the dentist to focus strictly on disease prevention, reversal, and so on.

I see a good number of these patients - zero fillings, great oral hygiene, no disease or bacterial pathology at all, but major case of snaggleteeth. I usually ask "Have you ever thought about getting braces?" (I first make sure they didn't have braces earlier and what I'm seeing now is a serious case of relapse.) If they say "No, my smile adds character" then I let them be, although in my head I am thinking "I would so not date you if you have teeth like that." If they say "Maybe, but I don't want to wear metal" or something like that, then I'll discuss adult ortho briefly and give them a referral to the orthodontist.

Heck, I need a job in 3 years so of course my opinion is going to be biased. 😀

 

[sportsgirl]

just to clarify--i'm not talking minor ortho work to straighten teeth--i'm more thinking when people resort to something like porcelain veneers just so they can look like Julia Roberts. Make the best of what you have!

 

[MissMuffet]

Cary Grant only had one upper central. He lost the other when he was a kid and, he said, the adjacent ones migrated in to fill the space. He attributed his signature half-smile to all the years of self-consciousness about the flaw. 😳

 

[Revellian]

In my view--though i am not a dentist (hope to be--so take it as it is) --No one has the perfect smile--a smile adds character, flaws and all. A smile is priceless, (insert mastercard commercial here) but i mean--we shouldn't be able to flat out say--my teeth cost me so much money, now they are perfect. I don't think dentists should be influencing the drive for the perfect smile in their clinics--they are health care professionals(in my opinion). Yes, confidence is key, the whole "Smile. Increase your face value." is obviously true--and a Dentists job to help people with confidence is important.
But I think a dentist should not see imperfections in ones smile but character.

I'm not about to say to a patient "your teeth are nasty and fugly and I want to fix them for you." What I will do is ask my patients if they have any concerns about the appearance of their teeth/smile. If they say yes, then we can discuss treatment options. I don't find anything unethical about placing porcelain veneers on a patient to close a diastema, or to cover up some staining, just as long as the patient is motivated and properly informed. With that said, I sure as he!! wouldn't want to touch the smile of someone like Steve Buschemi, who relies on his teeth as part of the creepy characters he plays. Fixing his teeth may destroy his livelihood.

Speaking of ethics, how many people here would remove a perfectly good amalgam filling and replace it with composite at the patient's request due to esthetics? What if the request was due to their perception of danger posed by the mercury in amalgam? Does the motivation matter?

 

[ElDienteLoco]

Speaking of ethics, how many people here would remove a perfectly good amalgam filling and replace it with composite at the patient's request due to esthetics? What if the request was due to their perception of danger posed by the mercury in amalgam? Does the motivation matter?

Do you feel you can do it better than the dentist down the street? Because if they really feel the alleged poisonous filling needs to be replaced, they will get it replaced whether you do it or not. I would replace it if, after trying to educate them on the matter, they were still determined. IMO

 

[aphistis]

Do you feel you can do it better than the dentist down the street? Because if they really feel the alleged poisonous filling needs to be replaced, they will get it replaced whether you do it or not. I would replace it if, after trying to educate them on the matter, they were still determined. IMO

"If I don't take their money, someone else will" doesn't justify performing an unethical procedure to me. If their concern is really about the aesthetics, then I'll replace it without a qualm, but if I'm convinced they're worried about the "poisonous metal," I won't do it no matter how many fake other reasons they try to gin up for me.

 

[nghe.luu]

How about the skeletal class II of America's most famous family?

 

[ca_dreamin']

How about the skeletal class II of America's most famous family?

👍

 

[kenniemd]

Anybody else find themselves studying people for pathology? I do it all the time now, especially after having finished our sequence of oral pathology courses. When I watch movies, I find myself studying some of the details of celebrity's smiles that I never noticed before. So without further ado, here's a list of actors/actresses/singers that I've noticed have some sort of dental pathology. Please feel free to add to the list:

Tom Cruise: The man has a midline discrepancy of about 6mm. I'd like to give him a Le Forte I and rotate that sucker about 20 degrees so that his maxilla lines up with the rest of his face. It's all I can look at anytime he opens his mouth.

Joaquin Phoenix: As far as I can tell, he looks to have a incomplete unilateral cleft lip, and a peg lateral on the same side. I was distracted the whole time I watched Gladiator. I couldn't help but stare at his lip. He has said in interviews that he never had a cleft lip as a baby, so an incomplete cleft would make sense.

Jodie Foster: I think she has a right peg lateral. It's about 1/4 the size of her central.

Kirsten Dunst: Class II Div II malocclusion.

Elliot Yamin: As was mentioned in another thread, he appears to be missing both lateral incisors giving him a very narrow arch. I can't tell from pictures, but it wouldn't surprise me if he had a bilateral crossbite.

Jewel: She’s got a major snaggle tooth. Her teeth seem fairly straight with the exception of her fang-like #6. That tooth scares me.

During last year's Oscars, there was an interview with film critic Roger Ebert and I thought something looked really weird. I knew something was up with his Parotids and hoped for his sake it wasn't cancer. I've got a pic from another event
http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/contributor/1800358753/photo/531909

Just last week, I read an article that he had begun undergoing cancer therapy. I wish him best of luck. Hopefully he wont lose all his teeth and have to wear a complete/complete
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13084223/

Maybe I should have sent him an anonymous fan mail who knows. What responsibility do dental professionals have when dealing with complete strangers on the street or in the media?