How To Properly Care For Your Porcelain Veneers
Porcelain Laminate Veneers, or simply “veneers”, are custom-made porcelain wafers that the dentist places over the fronts of the teeth to enhance their appearance and also to repair damage. Veneers can dramatically change a person’s smile and help improve their self-confidence. In the 1920’s and 30’s, actors, actresses and other performers would often go to the extreme measure of having their teeth extracted and dentures (false teeth) made to improve their smile. Fortunately, this radical procedure has given way to veneers, a far more conservative approach. Veneers are what give many Hollywood movie stars that dazzling smile we see on the silver screen.
Veneers can be used to improve a wide variety of cosmetic dental problems. They can whiten stained or discolored teeth, close gaps between teeth, “correct” a crooked smile without the need for braces, repair chips and imperfections, and create a more attractive or youthful looking smile. The procedure usually involves removing only a thin amount of the outermost layer of the tooth, called the enamel. The dentist then takes molds (impressions) of the mouth. Temporary veneers are then placed for the patient to wear while the permanent veneers are being made. The procedure usually takes between one and a half and two hours.
Porcelain veneers are a popular option for patients who have cosmetic problems with their teeth. Veneers are thin porcelain shells that are affixed to the front of teeth to provide a clean, bright, healthy looking smile.
Porcelain veneers can be an effective solution for a variety of cosmetic dental problems, including:
- Cracked teeth
- Pitted or chipped teeth
- Stained teeth
- Slightly crooked teeth
- Unevenly sized teeth
- Gaps between teeth
How Long Is The Treatment?
The measurements of the tooth will be taken so that the Veneers can be prepared accordingly. Measurements differ from patient to patient. Once prepared, they are fixed in your mouth with a very strong paste, so that it can stay there for long. Dentists usually take long on fixing the Veneers because they want to make sure that the Veneers do not fall off after they fit it. Fixing Veneers has to be done very carefully, because due to little negligence, it is very likely that they fall off very soon. The Dentists will also match the Porcelain to the color of your natural teeth, so that it does not look odd. If patients choose a whiter shade, then they will have to take extra care of their teeth in order to make sure that they never turn yellow; otherwise the Veneer will be spotted very easily in the mouth.
Benefits of Porcelain Veneers:
Porcelain Veneers will act as a natural tooth or teeth in your mouth and you will not even have the feeling of something extra stuck in your gums. Because they are made of ceramic, they give a very natural look. In addition, it does not even stain with anything; in case it does, you can always get the Veneers polished when you visit your Dentist. The benefits Porcelain Veneer offers make it better than any other cosmetic surgery.
How to clean your Veneers
Instructions:
- Use whitening toothpaste to clean your dental veneers. While you cannot change the colors of the veneers, the toothpaste can prevent plaque and stain films from forming on top of the veneers, affecting the overall look and feel of the implants.
- Brush, floss and rinse as you would your natural teeth. Keeping your dental veneers in good condition will prevent cavities and gum disease from changing the color of the teeth behind the veneers (which will have an effect on the color of the veneers themselves).
- Clean dental veneers with professional toothpaste formulas, such as Supersmile (see Resources below). Available only through dentists or online, the toothpaste was especially formulated to prevent and remove stains on dental veneers without the use of abrasive components.
- Ask your dentist to demonstrate the proper technique for flossing after having your veneers bonded. This will prevent you from putting pressure on the wrong places and causing chips or fissures. Your dentist may ask you to slide your floss out sideways rather than pulling it straight down from the gum line.
- Schedule regular checkups and professional cleanings. While a hygienist will not need to perform any cleaning directly on the veneers, he can ensure that there is no plaque between them or on the backs of your teeth. Request the hygienist who has the most experience treating patients with veneers.
Ideally, models of your teeth can be waxed-up so one can see the size and shape of the final product before any preparation has been started. This is a two appointment procedure. The first appointment is the preparation phase. A small amount of enamel is removed off the front of the tooth and an impression is made. The impression is sent to the lab and the lab makes a front of the tooth, much like a false fingernail, out of porcelain. The dentist tries in, bonds, trims and polishes the veneers at the next appointment. The seating is usually a time consuming appointment and can last for hours. But usually quite worth the wait.
CONTACT US
Jeff C. Jenkins, D.D.S.
Richard Martin, D.D.S.
5601 Bridge St, Ste 480
Fort Worth, TX 76112
(817) 259-1371
(817) 937-4369 Fax