Dental veneers are one of the different resources used to repair teeth, as they allow to cover up defects in the shape and color of the teeth.
Can anyone get dental veneers?
Yes, but it is not always the ideal solution to improve the patient’s situation and achieve a successful treatment. Nowadays there are multiple treatments to solve each situation successfully, but it is always important to go to a trusted dentist, familiar with the techniques to be developed, to provide personalized advice, assessing the current situation and objectives to be achieved at the end of the treatment.
Ceramic or resin dental veneers are an excellent option to improve the shape, proportion and color of our teeth, but they should always be properly planned to avoid future problems or treatment failures.
Is the process painful?
The answer is clear, no. It is always necessary and essential to carry out a correct study and planning so that the development of the treatment is a pleasant experience for the patient and the results are up to expectations. They are simple treatments in which the patient should be comfortable during the development of clinical treatment and postoperative, as well as being able to lead a normal life at all times, without functional and / or aesthetic limitations.
What is the difference between porcelain and composite veneers?
Nowadays, both materials offer very high quality esthetic results. Although it is convenient to make a personalized assessment to determine the individual needs of each patient and determine the ideal material of choice, we could summarize its indications in two aspects: the durability of the treatment while maintaining perfect optical conditions, the need for grinding of the teeth and the economic cost.
Composite veneers are indicated for patients who do not require wear of their teeth to improve the esthetics of their smile or functionality, maintaining ideal optical properties for 6-8 years, provided that a small amount of annual polishing maintenance is performed. They are indicated for fractured teeth, wear, changes in shape, changes in color, closure of diastemas, etc., and their economic cost is lower than that of ceramics.
Ceramic veneers (feldspathic ceramic, lithium disilicate, etc.), regardless of the material used, do not require annual polishing and/or maintenance. However, it is advisable to make periodic revisions, since it is a material whose optical properties of color and brightness last much longer compared to resins or composite, being the material of choice in patients with high aesthetic demand and / or more severe wear-fracture problems. They are indicated for fractures, wear, changes in shape and/or color, diastemas, etc.
Is it necessary to grind the tooth to place the veneers?
It depends on the individual needs of each patient. Nowadays many patients ask for information about “No Prep” or “Lumineers” veneers, ceramics created for very specific cases, not suitable for all types of patients. In most clinical cases it is always necessary to perform a minimal and conservative preparation to achieve the correct seating of the ceramic and ensure its correct fit and function in the medium and long term.
Although a small amount of preparation is necessary, they are not the roughing as most patients think, being high precision preparations on the enamel of 0.3-0.6mm in specific areas of the tooth, not being necessary to “sharpen” the teeth as it was done several decades ago. They are treatments with carvings that are practically imperceptible to the human eye, being necessary to perform them with microscopic magnification, in which the patient will not suffer sensitivity or adverse sensations in any phase of the treatment.
Do they stain?
Ceramic veneers are made with feldspathic ceramic or lithium disilicate, materials with a non-porous vitreous matrix, avoiding internal pigmentation of the material during its useful life. Composite veneers are made of hybrid nanoceramic and resinous compounds that more easily absorb pigments that we acquire through our hygienic-dietary habits (coffee, tobacco, tea, carbonated beverages…), being necessary a maintenance every 8-12 months through a superficial polishing of the material that helps to recover its brightness and optical properties.
However, it is advisable to maintain correct hygiene habits to help preserve the results obtained and to carry out periodic check-ups with the specialist to extend the useful life of the treatments and preserve a correct state of oral health.