Beyond the tooth: The growing trend of aesthetic dentistry in the UK

Dentists have become more than just a place you go to for dental treatment. They are now becoming increasingly recognised as a place to go for all your aesthetic needs, as we’ve started to see this trend grow in recent years.

Although it might sound rather strange to hear your dentist now offering these treatments, there are numerous overlapping factors between dentistry and the medical aesthetics industry that can make it easy to connect the two, which allows dentists to go ‘beyond the tooth’.

What is aesthetic dentistry?

You’ll often hear the term ‘cosmetic dentistry’ from your dentist provider, which refers to and includes procedures such as; teeth whitening, dental bonding and veneers - essentially any procedure which enhances the overall appearance of your teeth or smile.

Although aesthetics dentistry has previously been defined as ‘embracing all the dental treatment disciplines with the aim of creating the best outcome for the patient, from an aesthetic, functional and biological perspective’, it now encompasses medical aesthetic treatments such as; Dermal Filler and Botulinum Toxin. 

The difference between the two terms is that ‘cosmetic dentistry’ is focused on enhancing a patient’s smile through correcting teeth, whereas aesthetic dentistry focuses on facial injectables that enhance the exterior appearance.

The benefits of dentists carrying out medical aesthetic procedures

Dentists are medically trained professionals who understand facial anatomy better than any other practitioner, with a deep understanding of how much and where to inject the treatments ensuring that patients feel comfortable and safe throughout the procedure. 

Alongside having treatment administered by a trained professional, dental practices will be CQC registered meaning that they already follow certain guidelines and regulations set by industry professionals.

How is the aesthetic dentistry market made up?

It’s not unusual for dentists to be offering Botulinum Toxin, as this was already used to treat specific dental problems within the mouth and jaw, so it makes sense for dentists to expand their services and treatments as demand for these continues to grow. 

Using our Clinic Profiler, we know that out of the 10,898 CQC registered dentists on our database, 19% of them are offering Botulinum Toxin or Dermal Filler.

However, only 6% of those who have had Botulinum Toxin in the last 12 months have received their treatment at a dental practice in comparison to aesthetics clinics at 60%. More people are likely to go to a beauty salon/spa to get Botulinum Toxin (8%), than visiting a professional dentist who has a deep understanding of the anatomy. Could this be due to a perception issue, with the UK population thinking that dentists only focus on the mouth/teeth or perhaps a brand awareness issue for dentists.

Either way, it’s clear that educating people about the benefits and importance of using a trained professional, such as a dentist, for medical aesthetic treatments needs to be at the forefront of the industry's movement to increase safety for patients.

Find out more about our data and insights services by emailing us at hello@rare.consulting or calling us on 020 7859 4627.