Dentofacial Harmony · Beverly Hills
Dentofacial harmony designed around your natural expression.
Dr. Shay evaluates the smile, lip support, facial proportions, profile, and natural movement together before recommending neurotoxin, dermal filler, dental treatment, a coordinated approach, or no treatment at all.
Natural first. Never a template.
What Dr. Shay Evaluates
What shapes the relationship between the smile and the face?
The smile does not exist in isolation. A visible concern may originate from tooth position, lip support, facial volume, muscle activity, profile, or several contributing factors, so these relationships are examined together, at rest and in motion, before treatment is selected.
- 01
Smile and lip support
Tooth position, tooth display, lip movement, lip support, gum display, and smile symmetry influence how the smile relates to the surrounding face.
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Facial support and symmetry
Cheek support, volume distribution, and natural asymmetries are evaluated without assuming that every difference requires correction.
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Profile and lower-face proportion
Chin projection, jawline, lip position, and the relationship between the nose, lips, and chin influence the profile and lower face.
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Movement and expression
Muscle activity during smiling, speaking, frowning, and animation is considered so treatment preserves natural character.
Concerns We Can Evaluate
A smile is more than the teeth.
Dr. Shay evaluates how the lips move, how much tooth and gum show, whether the smile elevates symmetrically, and how the teeth support the lips and lower face.
Lip support and tooth display
Tooth position and contour can affect how the lips are supported at rest and how much tooth shows during speech and smiling.
Gum display
Excessive or uneven gum display can involve lip movement, tooth position, gum levels, skeletal relationships, or several contributing factors. Treatment depends on the cause.
Smile symmetry
An asymmetrical smile can relate to muscle activity, tooth display, lip movement, or structural relationships and should be evaluated before treatment is selected.
Worn or missing teeth
Worn or missing teeth can reduce support for the lips and lower face. Rebuilding that support is a dental decision first, made before any injectable treatment is considered.
Treatment Options
Treatment is selected after the relationships are understood.
A Dentofacial Harmony plan may involve one treatment, several carefully coordinated treatments, or no treatment. Recommendations are based on anatomy, movement, medical and dental considerations, and the patient’s goals.
- 01
Neurotoxin treatment
Neurotoxin may be used to soften selected expression lines, reduce specific muscle-driven imbalances, or refine certain smile dynamics. Treatment is based on anatomy and facial movement rather than a standard injection pattern.
- Forehead and frown lines
- Crow’s-feet
- Selected gummy-smile patterns
- Selected asymmetrical smile movement
- Selected lower-face muscle patterns
- Selected jaw-muscle concerns after appropriate evaluation
- 02
Dermal filler
Hyaluronic-acid filler may be considered to restore or refine support in selected areas such as the lips, cheeks, chin, jawline, or surrounding lower face. The objective is proportionate support rather than visible overfilling.
- Lip support or proportion
- Cheek support
- Chin projection
- Jawline proportion
- Selected lower-face relationships
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Integrated smile and facial planning
When the smile, lip support, tooth display, gum display, and facial proportions are interconnected, treatment may combine facial aesthetics with conservative bonding, veneers, crowns, implants, gum treatment, or full-mouth rehabilitation when independently indicated.
- Smile and lip-support planning
- Gummy-smile evaluation
- Asymmetrical smile evaluation
- Profile and lower-face relationships
- Coordination with dental or gum treatment
A Conservative, Coordinated Approach
Not every facial concern needs more volume.
The goal is not to treat every visible feature. It is to identify which relationships meaningfully affect the smile and choose the least extensive plan capable of improving balance. Adding filler without identifying the source of a concern can produce an incomplete or unnatural result.
Restraint is not the absence of a treatment plan. It is part of the treatment plan.
The Process
What the process may involve.
- 01
Consultation and facial-smile evaluation
Concerns, priorities, medical and dental history, and the changes the patient does, or does not, want are discussed before anything else.
- 02
Photographs and records
The smile is documented at rest, in motion, and in profile so recommendations are based on how the face actually moves, not a single posed view.
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Coordinated treatment plan
Dr. Shay recommends dental treatment, facial-aesthetic treatment, a coordinated sequence, or no treatment. When tooth form and display need deeper planning, the Smile Design process guides that phase.
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Treatment and refinement
Care proceeds in stages, and results are reviewed and refined so the outcome remains natural and proportionate to the face.
An Integrated Perspective
A prosthodontic eye for proportion. Dedicated experience in facial aesthetics.
Dr. Shay’s advanced specialty training in prosthodontics informs how she evaluates tooth position, tooth display, lip support, smile movement, and lower-face relationships. Her more than eight years of facial-aesthetic experience, and membership in the American Academy of Facial Esthetics, inform how anatomy, muscle movement, and structural support are treated.
The two perspectives allow dental and facial-aesthetic care to be planned as one conservative, coordinated whole rather than as separate procedures.
Good to know
Questions about Dentofacial Harmony
That is the objective. Treatment is planned around the features, proportions, and expressions that already make the face recognizable. The goal is subtle refinement rather than creating a standardized or visibly treated appearance, although individual results vary.
Neurotoxin temporarily reduces activity in selected muscles. Dermal filler adds or restores support and contour in specifically selected treatment areas. They address different concerns and have different limitations, expected durations, and risks. One does not automatically substitute for the other.
A gummy or asymmetrical smile may involve lip movement, muscle activity, tooth position, gum levels, skeletal relationships, or several contributing factors. Treatment may involve neurotoxin, filler, dental treatment, gum treatment, a coordinated approach, or no injectable treatment. The cause must be evaluated first.
No. Facial-aesthetic treatment can be planned independently when appropriate. Dental and facial treatment may also be coordinated when tooth display, lip support, gum display, smile movement, or facial proportions are meaningfully connected.
Duration varies according to the product, treatment area, dose, anatomy, metabolism, muscle activity, and individual response. Injectable results are generally temporary, and maintenance timing should be determined individually rather than promised in advance.
Yes, when the treatments address genuinely connected concerns. Smile design, tooth display, gum display, lip support, profile, and facial proportions may sometimes benefit from coordinated planning. Each treatment should still have an independent clinical or aesthetic indication.
Begin With a Conversation
The most natural results respect the whole face.
Explore a balanced approach to the relationship between your smile and facial features.