Today, many people are considering porcelain veneers as the best method of tooth whitening available to them to brighten their smile. But it is debatable that dental porcelain veneers (or dental veneers as porcelain veneers are also known) are the best solution to stained or discolored teeth. On the one hand, it is claimed the porcelain veneers are virtually painless but others say they suffered pain during the procedure and heightened tooth sensitivity afterwards. On the other hand, it is said that dental veneers give the most natural look of all the possible solutions to stained teeth and thus are the best solution. 

What ARE Porcelain Dental Veneers?
Porcelain veneers are extremely thin sheets of porcelain that are bonded to the front of your teeth. People go for this professional tooth whitening solution not just to whiten teeth, but to solve crooked, damaged and chipped teeth. Now, porcelain as a substance is brittle. However, the fact that it is molded to your teeth gives it the ‘backing’ it needs to be strong and robust, ready to take on day-to-day normal diets. A word of caution though, dental veneers are tough but do consider that they are not your original teeth so cracking open, say, pistachio nuts using your porcelain covered teeth is not really advised.

What Is The Cost Of Dental Veneers?
Porcelain veneers prices vary greatly depending on whom you choose as your dentist and how many teeth you want treated. Many people just have the teeth that are obvious in their smile done, mainly because porcelain veneers cost anything from $500 to $2,000 per tooth. It depends on what you want done, but if you don’t need teeth realigned or repaired, and you just want to brighten your smile, and if money is a major consideration, then you may well be best to consider another solution like, for instance,  an at-home tooth whitening kit.

The Pros and Cons Of Porcelain Veneers
Many people say that porcelain veneers are the best solution for stained teeth, but just as many say that that is not so. So before you decide that they are the solution for you, please consider the pros and cons that we have set out below.

The Pros…
Solves misshapen teeth. Although touted as a tooth whitening solution (and that indeed they are), it’s important to note that porcelain veneers change the structure of your teeth. Whereas a tooth whitener will just whiten your teeth, dental veneers will fill out chips on your teeth and any gaps between your teeth (diastemas).

All natural! Without a doubt, porcelain veneers take top marks for giving people that ‘natural’ tooth appearance. You can bet that nobody will come up to you and ask “Hey, are those porcelain dental veneers that you have on?” This is because porcelain is translucent (it allows light to pass through) and it’s this quality that makes them project radiant, natural-looking smiles.

No staining. Another wonderful quality of porcelain is that it’s a ceramic (i.e., glass-like). As such, it resists staining. This is actually the quality that makes people think the costs associated with porcelain veneers are worth it. That is, even if it costs a lot to have them done, the low maintenance expense it requires makes it a cost-effective choice in the long run.

The Cons…
Pain before and after. Porcelain veneers require a cosmetic dentist to reduce your teeth’s enamel by about .5mm. During this reduction or shaving process, many complain of extreme pain. Of course, you can always ask your dentist to administer a local anesthetic. Another complaint often heard from people who have had porcelain veneers fitted is an increased sensitivity to hot and cold. This is actually normal as your teeth have, after all, been ’shaved’ and dental veneers fitted on them. However, if the pain/sensitivity lasts for weeks, then you should be concerned and visit your dentist.

There’s no turning back. The treatment that goes with porcelain veneers cannot be reversed. You cannot ‘grow’ your teeth back to its normal size after they have been reduced. As such, you’re really ’stuck’ with dental veneers the minute you let your dentist reduce your teeth.

They are expensive. Consider your goals. If you want to change the structure or shape of your teeth then go with veneers; if you want to just whiten your teeth, then consider an at-home tooth whitening solution instead (which would be about 10x cheaper than dental veneers).
 
What To Do If You Really Want Dental Veneers
Firstly you should find an excellent cosmetic dentist. Get recommendations from your normal dentist and friends. After all you don’t want an inexperienced dentist to be cutting down and reshaping your teeth. You’ll have a first appointment to discuss your decision and for the cosmetic dentist to look at your teeth. Then, at a follow up appointment, the dentist will reduce your teeth and take a mold for the dental porcelain veneers to be made. This usually takes about a week and then you’ll go back to the cosmetic dentist for the fitting of the porcelain veneers. And then you are finished with a bright new smile!

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This entry was posted on Thursday, September 6th, 2007 at 12:03 am and is filed under Tooth Bleaching . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.