Cosmetic Dentistry in Washington, DC
Porcelain Veneers FAQ
1. What is a veneer?
A veneer is a thin shell of porcelain or plastic-like an ultra-thin fingernail-that is bonded to a tooth to improve its color and shape.
2. Does the porcelain veneer cover the entire tooth?
A porcelain veneer generally covers only the front and top of a tooth.
3. When is a porcelain veneer the best choice of treatment?
Porcelain veneers are often the best treatment to close spaces between teeth, lengthen small or misshapen teeth, or to whiten stained or dark teeth.
4. Are there any other advantages to porcelain veneers?
When teeth are chipped or beginning to wear, porcelain veneers can protect them from further damage and restore their original appearance.
5. How does the porcelain veneer treatment work? How many appointments?
It takes two or more appointments to restore teeth with porcelain veneers. During the first appointment, the doctor shapes and lightly roughens the surface of the teeth. Then impressions are taken that the doctor uses to make exact working models of the mouth. It's on these models that the porcelain veneers get artistically crafted to fit the prepared teeth.
During the second appointment, the prepared teeth get cleaned and polished. Then the dentist uses a special adhesive to bond the porcelain veneers to the teeth. A gentle, high-intensity light hardens the adhesive.
6. How will I look while I wait for the lab to make my permanent porcelain veneers?
After the teeth are prepared for porcelain veneers, the patient leaves the office wearing highly specialized temporary porcelain veneers, which look better than their original teeth. The temporaries look very much like the permanent porcelain veneers will look.
7. Will it feel like there are bulky coverings on the teeth?
Once in place, the porcelain veneers virtually become part of the teeth. We can use them exactly as our own teeth, because the bond is extremely strong. The final result: natural, beautiful looking teeth.
8. What determines the color and shape of the porcelain veneers we choose?
The shape of the face, whites of the eyes, skin tones, height, body type, even the personality of the patient are factors in designing porcelain veneers.
9. Do porcelain veneers look as natural as original teeth?
The luster, shine and translucency of porcelain make it a near-perfect copy of natural enamel.
10. How long do porcelain veneers last?
Porcelain veneers last between ten and twenty years. Porcelain is a strong, highly resilient material that will not stain or wear from brushing. And the thin façade of porcelain that is bonded to the enamel becomes extremely strong-and durable!
11. What is a Lumineer? And does it really offer a better veneer solution?
In recent years, powerful marketing has been pumping the image of Lumineers as a choice that provides the thinnest covering for teeth in need of a better look. Dental consumers are hard pressed to challenge the claims of this product that these veneers are “significantly thinner” and there is “no need to prepare the tooth surface.”
12. Do experienced cosmetic dentists use Lumineers?
To a dentist who places hundreds of crowns and veneers every year, the Lumineer label represents a marketing gimmick that appeals to unknowing dental consumers. For example, a survey of veteran cosmetic dentists would likely say that such thin veneers as Lumineers are of questionable value to most dental patients. It’s like saying I want a new car, and someone says, “Okay, here’s a Chevy.”
Thinner is not always better, especially if the shape and color of a tooth need to be improved. And despite a slightly thinner quality, a Lumineer on a normal tooth, likely would leave an undesirable “bulbous” appearance.
The important thing to know is that veneers are called upon to improve the color and shape of teeth. The realities of dentistry are difficult to deny: With Lumineers, a darker tooth color likely will show through the thin porcelain, and the shape of the tooth would not change without some preparation of the tooth underneath the veneer.
13. What about the quality of porcelain in a Lumineer?
Patients doing research would easily discover that a dentist doing a lot of cosmetic treatment uses possibly 5 to 10 different kinds of porcelains, depending on the patient’s needs. That is the beauty of crafting custom veneers with porcelain that is right for each patient. And that is the reason for the success of veneers—sometimes in combination with crowns—as a way to improve smiles.
We explain to patients all the time that in the end it takes more than the most lustrous, pearlescent porcelain to produce a winning veneer. The final appearance of an exquisitely well-prepared veneer depends on the technical skill of the cosmetic dentist and his laboratory technician—as well as an artistic eye and fine taste.
If you are considering porcelain veneers contact our cosmetic dentists in the Washington, DC area, please call or e-mail us today to schedule your initial consultation.
Washington Center for Dentistry
1430 K Street NW, Eighth Floor
Washington D.C., 20005
(202) 223-6630
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