Smile Design & AI

Smile design has traditionally focused on teeth, proportions, and aesthetics. Yet a smile’s impact extends far beyond appearance—it influences confidence, self-perception, and overall psychological wellbeing. This presentation explores how artificial intelligence is transforming the way dentists visualize and communicate potential smile outcomes. AI-generated simulations and video technologies allow patients to preview their potential future smile in the context of their face, helping them understand treatment possibilities and engage more confidently in care.

Beyond patient communication, AI visualisation tools support clinicians’ diagnostic thinking. By analyzing AI-generated smile proposals, clinicians can assess suggested changes, evaluate biological and orthodontic limitations, and refine treatment plans. AI thus becomes a powerful educational tool, fostering more structured, comprehensive, and human-centered smile design. Through clinical examples and emerging research on smile perception and wellbeing, this lecture demonstrates how dentists can integrate AI-driven visualization while maintaining authentic, patient-focused outcomes.

Key Takeaways:

• Use AI to Engage Patients: Show AI-generated smile simulations early in the consultation to help patients visualize results, ask informed questions, and commit confidently to treatment.

• Analyze AI Critically: Review AI-proposed changes against biological, functional, and orthodontic limitations to ensure treatment plans are realistic, healthy, and customized for each patient.

• Refine Treatment Planning: Incorporate insights from AI visualizations to structure comprehensive, stepwise treatment plans that balance aesthetics, facial harmony, and patient wellbeing.

  
  

Dr. Elaine Halley graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 1992 and became a member of the Royal College of General Dental Practitioners in 1995. She is a founder and past president of the British Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry and an accredited member of the International College of Dentists.

She earned a Master of Science in Restorative and Aesthetic Dentistry with distinction from the University of Manchester. She is a Digital Smile Design (DSD) Master, accredited by Christian Coachman, and serves as an official DSD instructor. She teaches Digital Smile Design as part of the Tipton Training Level 7 Postgraduate Certificate for dentists seeking to advance their clinical skills, with courses held in Watford, Manchester, and Dubai. She is also a member of Align Technology’s Global Faculty and teaches Comprehensive Invisalign Certification courses throughout the UK.

Dr. Halley serves as an Opinion Leader for multiple dental companies, including DMG, Ivoclar Vivadent, Optident, and Align Technology (Invisalign), and lectures widely across the UK, Europe, and the United States. She has authored numerous articles on clinical dentistry, smile design, treatment planning, digital dentistry, and the business of dentistry, and she serves on the board of the Digital Dental Society UK.

Elaine opened Cherrybank Dental Spa in Perth in 1995 and a second practice in Edinburgh in 2010, which she later sold to the Pain Free Dentistry Group. She currently serves as Clinical Director for the Pain Free Dental Group, mentoring associates across Scotland, many of whom visit the Perth practice to observe best practices. Cherrybank Dental Spa Perth remains an independent, private practice.

She is the author of Smile Analysis, a textbook for dentists providing a structured pathway from single-tooth treatment to comprehensive diagnosis and treatment planning.