Regardless of what causes unattractive teeth, dental veneers can solve a range of cosmetic dental issues and create a white, straight ‘Hollywood’ smile. Dental veneers are custom-designed wafer-thin shells of tooth-like material that, when applied over the surface of a tooth, can cover worn tooth enamel and rough edges, uneven tooth alignment or spacing, crowding, staining, as well as chips or cracks.
Discoloured teeth that are resistant to tooth whitening treatments can also be corrected using dental veneers.
Veneers can increase the dimension of the tooth, thickening them and/or making them squarer or longer. Unlike a crown, which covers the entire tooth, a veneer typically covers the visible front part of the tooth and slightly wraps over the biting edge.
The translucent quality of today’s veneers provides a more natural appearance than what has typically been available in the past. The two most common materials used in the manufacture of veneers are porcelain and composite resin.
Porcelain veneers
Porcelain veneers can create a very natural tooth appearance due to the translucent properties of the porcelain, allowing the veneers to mimic the light-handling characteristics of natural tooth enamel.
The pieces of porcelain are usually only around 0.5mm thick and are bonded to the front surface of the teeth. Despite their thinness, porcelain veneers are very hard and wear-resistant – unlike some other bonding materials, porcelain is an impervious ceramic and is resistant to staining.
It typically takes two dental visits for porcelain veneer treatment. At the first appointment, the enamel on the front side of the tooth is trimmed back. The amount of enamel the dentist shaves back is conservative, usually the same amount as the veneer itself, around 0.5mm.
Next the dentist takes an impression of the tooth or teeth that have been prepared for the veneers. These dental moulds are sent to a dental lab technician who will in turn make the veneer. In some cases, because so little tooth is removed, no provisional restorations are needed in between dental visits.
At the next appointment (usually one to two weeks later), the dentist cleans the repaired surfaces of the teeth and fits the veneers. The fit is evaluated by both the dentist and the patient and checked for colour and shape.
Once the veneers have been approved, the relevant teeth are cleaned with a mild acidic solution and a tooth-coloured bonding adhesive is applied to the teeth and veneers. This is typically dried and then hardened to the teeth with a curing light. Any excess dental cement is then removed and the veneers are polished.
Although porcelain is inherently brittle, when it is firmly bonded to a sturdy substructure, ie the prepared tooth, it becomes very strong and durable. However, because of its brittle consistency, the veneer can chip if hit by hard objects and will need to be replaced. It is therefore advisable to cease fingernail biting, eating hard foods such as stone fruit, chops and ice, or chewing on pens and pencils. By avoiding such objects and maintaining proper dental hygiene, dental veneers can usually last in the vicinity of around 10 to 15 years.
It is important to bear in mind that porcelain veneers are almost always irreversible because the tooth is reshaped during the preparation process.
Composite veneers
Dental composite, the restorative used with cosmetic tooth bonding, is more opaque than porcelain and doesn’t mimic the translucency and light-handling characteristics of tooth enamel as readily. Composite material is also more susceptible to staining and such veneers will typically not be as long lasting as their porcelain counterparts.
However, in the hands of a skilled dentist composite veneers can create beautiful and natural-looking teeth. They also offer certain benefits over porcelain veneers: usually much less cost; less or no tooth intervention (shaving down of the tooth during the preparation process); and they can be performed in the one visit.
During the procedure the dentist applies a tooth-coloured composite resin to the tooth and sculpts the pliable resin to create an aesthetically pleasing result. A curing light is then shone onto the pliable resin to permanently harden it. In the final step, the dentist smooths out imperfections and polishes the resin.
The most notable benefit of a composite veneer is that it can be repaired if damaged. The downside of composite veneers is they generally will not look as natural as a porcelain veneer and they are typically not as durable.
