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Australasian Dentist September-October 2025

If you’re a clinician striving to elevate your aesthetic outcomes or seeking a deeper understanding of the collaborative workflow between technician and dentist, this might interest you. Earlier in 2025, we shared a before-and-after case on the Smile Virtuoso blog that generated a great deal of interest —“The Zirconia Renaissance – Unlocking the Aesthetic Potential with Strength”. It documented not just the technical execution of a multi-unit aesthetic rehabilitation, but also the communication protocols and layered material strategies that helped exceed the patient’s expectations. This 5-page article has been accepted and published in the September–October issue of Australasian Dentist, a well-established clinical journal distributed throughout Australia and the Pacific region. The published version includes detailed case photography, functional insights, and a full...

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Before and After 2024: The Zirconia Renaissance – Unlocking the Aesthetic Potential with Strength

In the ever-evolving world of metal-free aesthetic dentistry, material selection remains one of the most powerful—yet often under-examined—decisions we make as clinicians and ceramists. Since the inception of my inaugural business in 2008, Smile by Yugo, I’ve witnessed—and contributed to—a profound transformation in the materials we rely on to craft beauty and function alike. Over the years, we’ve transitioned from traditional feldspathic and refractory layering veneer techniques to pressed glass ceramics (e.g., Empress, Ivoclar Vivadent), exploring the potential of staining techniques in monolithic structures, then upgraded to lithium disilicate (e.g., e.max, Ivoclar Vivadent), and now, increasingly, toward the modern versatility of zirconia. That said, without ongoing engagement in continuing education, hands-on experimentation, and cross-disciplinary collaboration, it’s easy to default to familiar...

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Before and After 2023: Refining the Fine – Subtle Aesthetic Enhancements with Major Impact

At first glance, Sherelle’s pre-operative condition (the image on the left) appears almost flawless. Her smile is bright, symmetrical, and generally well-aligned—qualities many patients would already consider ideal. And yet, as with many high-performing professionals in the dental field, even minor imperfections can weigh heavily on one’s confidence. Sherelle is no ordinary patient. As the receptionist at Smile Doctor Mona Vale—one of the most respected dental practices in Sydney’s Northern Beaches—she plays a crucial role in patient communication and care. In fact, she often uses her own journey as a live example to help patients understand what’s possible with thoughtful smile design. This case reminds us that aesthetic dentistry isn’t just about fixing the obvious—it’s about listening, understanding subtle dissatisfaction, and finding...

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Before and After 2022: Smile Design 2.0 (Part 2) – Performing a Smile Makeover on Social Media Influencer

In Part 1 of ‘Smile Design 2.0’, I introduced my well-established standardised protocol for smile design, applied to a dental professional – often one of the most challenging types of patients due to their high dental IQ and elevated expectations. Treating fellow colleagues requires absolute precision and a deep understanding of the nuances within my specialties. In Part 2 of this blog series, I will again cover the essential requirements for digital photography and effective communication between dental professionals and patients, taking a consistent step-by-step approach. This time, however, my focus shifts to a social media influencer. The case presented here features an Asian female patient who shares her physical appearance and life experience on social media. Working with celebrity or influencer...

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Before and After 2021: Smile Design 2.0 (Part 1) – Performing a smile makeover for dental professionals

I’ve been meaning to work on my publications for a while but was occupied with my GAMSAT studies, plus the establishment and stabilisation of my new business - Smile Virtuoso, in Pyrmont, NSW. It’s been a year and a half since I updated my blog posts, and now I finally have an opportunity to work on some exciting projects to share and be published in 2023! I want to kick off the blog post in this Before and After section, titled ‘Smile Design 2.0 (part 1 and part 2)’. These blog posts serve as sneak peeks of the cases presented in my upcoming article, where I present a standardised protocol in smile design, explaining the requirements in digital photography and communication...

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Before and After 2020: Missing Tooth Replacement on Lateral Incisors (Part 2)

A Caucasian male patient in his youth was introduced to me upon a failure of the previous Maryland-Bridges on 13-11, 21-23. The restorations only lasted for a few months (done by another technician), and I couldn’t identify its cause or never given a specific reason by the treating clinician.   In part 1 of the ‘missing tooth replacement’ (click here to read), I presented implant restorations in Zirconia with Ti interface abutment to replace the lateral incisors. For this case, I present more of a conservative and cost-effective option – Maryland-Bridges in lithium disilicate (e.max) for optimum bonding strength.   Figs 1-2 show the pre-op condition.   Fig 3 shows my standard protocol in shade taking. I make sure to use three different shade guides to identify the...

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Before and After 2019: Missing Tooth Replacement on Lateral Incisors (Part 1)

A Caucasian female patient in her 20s was introduced to me upon completion of extensive orthodontic treatment to create enough space to replace the missing laterals. It has been a long journey for the patient to get to the point having the implants on the laterals and hoping to achieve the smile that she never thought was possible.   There were a few technical challenges that I encountered: the angulation of the screw channels colour matching with the surrounding natural dentition.   1: Today, close to 100% of my implant restorations are requested as screw-retained rather than cement-retained. When the angulation of the implants are not ideal, then my primary choice is to use dynamic abutment – an alternative to the genuine Ti interface...

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Before and After 2018: Smile Makeover – Replacement of Existing Restorations

A Caucasian female patient in her 40s flew in from Switzerland and stayed in Sydney, Australia, over the Xmas break for the smile makeover. Her existing veneers were only done 4-5 years ago by another technician, and she was unhappy with them due to being over contoured.   The treating clinician modified the shape clinically before sending the patient to my studio for a smile design consultation. Thus, her condition was close to ideal, and she was happy with them in general. My job was to identify where we can improve and determine the number of units required to achieve the best possible outcome.   Figs 1-3 show the pre-op condition.   Upon detailed discussion, I observed the following information.   Shape: As noted above, the treating clinician improved...

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Before and After 2017: Smile Makeover – Achieving Super-bright Life-like Restorations

A Caucasian female patient in her 30s visited me for a consultation with temporary restorations in the mouth. She had her first set of veneers, which was about 16 years old. She recently had Invisalign, but the teeth moved out of the alignment. She is also concerned about the root exposure and uneven gingival level.   She had missing second premolars and wished to have a brighter smile, in fact, as bright as possible without making them look artificial. She commenced bleaching on her lower dentition to reduce the contrast. We decided to replace the existing restorations from 13-23 – right canine to left canine, and place conservative veneers on 14&24 – right and left first premolar, a total of 8 units...

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Reproducing Nature Part 4: Smile Design

LVI Visions featured Yugo’s article titled ‘Reproducing Nature: Smile Design in 2008 (published language: English).   Introduction:   Today, creating a natural-looking smile is essential in cosmetic/aesthetic dentistry. As I mentioned in the first part of this article (European Journal of Eesthetic Dentistry Winter 2008), many people think that white “Hollywood Smiles” look fake but is it true? Have you thought about bleached natural dentition? I think it looks healthy and attractive but doesn’t look fake at all. That is the type of benchmark I set for myself when the patient is after a perfect smile – i.e., bright yet natural.   Now, what is the definition of “perfect” anyway? Does it mean that it’s perfectly in proportion, perfectly adapted to the patient’s desire or could...

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