The Many Uses of Porcelain Veneers

There are many approaches to cosmetic dentistry that we can use to help you achieve your ideal smile. All of them have their uses, but none of them are as versatile as porcelain veneers. Porcelain veneers have the power to address almost any cosmetic complaint you may have about your teeth. From a subtle change for just one tooth to a complete makeover for your entire smile, porcelain veneers can do it all.

And unlike what you may suspect, porcelain veneers don’t suffer for being able to achieve so many different results–they’re often the best way to achieve the results you’re looking for.

Some Common Uses for Porcelain Veneers

Porcelain veneers are a fairly simple treatment to understand. Thin surfaces of advanced ceramic are bonded to the front of your teeth. But with this one procedure, we can correct an astounding number of complaints you may have about your smile.

Porcelain veneers can help if your teeth are:

  • Discolored
  • Gapped
  • Crowded
  • Crooked
  • Rotated
  • Chipped
  • Worn
  • Small
  • Poorly shaped

Best of all, porcelain veneers can improve all these complaints at once. In less than a month you can have a completely new, beautiful smile.

Teeth Whitening with Porcelain Veneers

Most people are unhappy with the color of their teeth. They wish their teeth were whiter, especially as people get older.

The normal approach to treating discolored teeth is teeth whitening. This can remove staining material from your teeth. It’s very effective at what it does, but it isn’t always enough.

Teeth whitening removes stains, but it can’t help if your enamel itself isn’t as bright as you want, if the enamel is thin, or if staining is coming from within the tooth. In these cases, you need a solution that covers discolored teeth. That’s what porcelain veneers do, and they let you get a smile that is as bright as you want it. Plus, veneers are very stain resistant so they can give whitening results that last for a decade or more. And a veneer is a great solution when you have just one discolored tooth that doesn’t match.

Veneers Can Be Better Than Braces

Braces can be used for any problem with tooth alignment or spacing. They can correct gaps between your teeth, straighten crooked teeth, space out crowded teeth, and improve many other problems.

Porcelain veneers can also straighten your teeth, but the approach is fundamentally different. Veneers work by reshaping the visible portion of the teeth so that they achieve the desired appearance without actually moving the teeth.

This can be better because it allows us to reshape teeth at the same time, and it’s much faster than orthodontics. Many people get braces and realize only after the fact that they also weren’t happy with the shape of their teeth. Veneers can take care of both problems at once.

Porcelain Veneers for Chipped and Worn Teeth

A minor chipped tooth can be a cosmetic problem, but it can easily be fixed with a porcelain veneer. Porcelain veneers are a better approach to fixing these chips than dental bonding. Although it takes longer to complete, porcelain veneers will last for much longer, and they’re more attractive.

Veneers are effective for chipped teeth, but a more serious cracked tooth may require more supportive treatment.

If all your teeth are getting worn down, we can build them up with porcelain veneers. But if wear is very bad, we may want to investigate bite issues like TMJ before we place veneers. Otherwise, veneers might get damaged, too.

Peg Laterals, Retained Baby Teeth, and More

If you are unhappy with the size or shape of your teeth, porcelain veneers can reshape them to make them tall and attractive. Peg laterals are an uncommon congenital condition where your lateral incisors (the teeth just outside your center two teeth) develop a round shape instead of the normal flat blade shape. Some people never lose their deciduous teeth, also called baby teeth. These teeth can be healthy, but they are too small for your smile.

In these and other cases of small or unattractively shaped teeth, porcelain veneers work wonders. They can build up the teeth so you have an attractive smile. No one will guess that you had these tooth malformations. In some cases, we might recommend dental crowns instead if this will achieve better results.

What Can We Do for You?

For most common complaints you may have about the appearance of your smile, porcelain veneers can help. But if they’re not, cosmetic dentistry has other tools we can use to give you smile of your dreams.

To learn how the smile of your dreams can become reality, contact us today!