No matter whom you’re talking about, that person would love to have straight, even, matching teeth. But for whatever reason — be it bad genes, early antibiotics as a kid, tooth damage, or even severe stains — that person may have gaps in his or her teeth, chipped teeth, teeth of uneven sizes, and other issues.
Fixing all of those problems can be quite costly and involve many different procedures. But you can cover up your problems, in effect, with porcelain veneers. And while a cover-up didn’t do much for Richard Nixon, in the dental world it can make all the difference.
As their name implies, porcelain veneers are thin porcelain overlays that are bonded onto the fronts of your teeth effectively covering up any flaws and presenting a perfect smile to the world.
After our dentists have examined you to be sure your teeth are healthy enough for veneers (any problems such as decay must be rectified prior to having veneers applied), it’s on to the procedure. First, we shave off ½ millimeter of tooth enamel from the front of each tooth that will receive a veneer. Why? This has a twofold purpose. It makes room for the veneer, and it makes a great bonding surface on the tooth for the veneer to adhere to. Next, we take impressions of your teeth with the fronts shaved off, and we send these impressions to the lab to create your custom veneers. While we’re waiting for their fabrication, we place temporary veneers on your teeth.
When your veneers are finished, you return to our office. First, we check the fit and color match of the veneers. Once we are satisfied, we clean and polish your teeth. Then we cement the veneers onto your teeth, remove any stray cement and shave off any protruding areas.
Now you’re ready to show the world your dazzling new smile, and it only took two visits!
