Porcelain Dental Veneers: Step-By-Step Guide

Your smile is your asset. It shapes your personality and makes you appear more confident. Now, imagine you have a tainted smile or have a broken tooth right in the upper front jaw. Well, this is sure to affect your smile, make you look underconfident, and turn you into a laughing stock to many. Indeed, it is embarrassing. But to save you from this embarrassment, the dental industry has embraced porcelain veneers.

Now, you do not have to spend your life in a lot of insecurity. Instead, you can get rid of your flaws with the help of cosmetic dentistry. Installing porcelain veneers belongs to cosmetic dentistry that gives you the look of a natural tooth. Since most of you want to rectify your dental flaws, let’s take a look at these dental veneers in detail.

What are porcelain veneers?

The porcelain dental veneers are like covers that the dentist puts on top of your teeth to hide their flaws. As you can figure out, these are made up of thin porcelain shells that look exactly like your natural teeth. So, once you wear these porcelain veneers, people will hardly be able to make out. Right from dental discoloration to misaligned teeth and broken teeth, these porcelain veneers are a solution to all these dental issues.

You certainly don’t want people to understand if you are wearing a covering on the surface of your teeth. Keeping this in mind, the dentist first takes images and measurements of your teeth and mouth. Then, he prepares these dental veneers exactly like your teeth only to give them a natural effect.

Of all the kinds of veneers, dentists prefer porcelain ones because of their high quality, better durability, and stain-resistant features. If you know to take care of your porcelain veneers in the correct way, they can last for nearly two decades.

Procedure for fixing porcelain dental veneers

When you are ready to fix porcelain veneers, the dentist will ask you to visit his chamber thrice – the first time for general consultation, the second time for preparing the veneer, and the final time for the placement of the veneer. Let’s take a look at each stage in detail.

• Consultation with the dentist

In the consultation phase, you meet with the dentist and share your expectations regarding the porcelain veneers. Here, the dentist will thoroughly check your dental condition and see if you are suitable for fixing the dental veneers. If needed, the dentist may also perform an x-ray of the inner portion of your mouth and teeth. When your dentist feels that your teeth need more strength, he may suggest some other dental treatment.  

• Preparing the porcelain veneer

In the preparation phase, the dentist shaves an extremely thin layer of your teeth’s enamel. Although this creates a slightly rough surface, it helps to fix the porcelain veneer at ease. To prevent any kind of discomfort, the dentist uses local anesthesia. Next, the dentist creates an impression of your teeth and sends the measurement and the shape to the lab to prepare the veneer. This custom design nearly takes one to two weeks.

• Placement of the porcelain veneer

Placing the porcelain veneer is the final step. Here, the dentist uses a bonding material to fix the porcelain veneer. Then, the dentist uses a special light to harden and strengthen the bonding material. Finally, the dentist shares a set of basic instructions you should follow for the betterment of the veneer.

What can you expect?

When you get a porcelain veneer, you may experience some dental sensitivity. This happens because the dentist first rips off some amount of enamel from the surface of your teeth. Due to this, you cannot eat or drink anything extremely hot or cold. However, this is completely temporary and will subside within the next two weeks.

Right after installing the porcelain veneers, you may experience some difficulty while biting food. Your body will need some time to get adjusted to the new veneers. Since your mouth has a new fixture installed on it, you may have an awkward bite. However, all these symptoms are temporary.

How to take care of porcelain veneers?

If you have to make the dental veneers last longer, it is wise to take care of them from the very beginning. These are the golden rules to expand the lifespan of a porcelain veneer:

• Use a fluoride toothpaste to brush your teeth at least twice a day.
• Never use toothpaste that guarantees you to whiten your teeth.
• Floss regularly to remove all the bacteria and food residue from between the teeth and veneers.
• Stay away from smoking and drinking to prevent stains on your dental veneers.
• Use an antiseptic mouthwash that does not have alcohol in it. This will help to kill the bacteria and prevent dental erosion.
• Right after getting veneers, avoid eating anything hard like nuts, candies, or ice cubes.
• A mouth guard can prevent dental grinding.
• Always visit your dentist at an interval of six months.

Are you suitable for porcelain veneers?

You have to be sure if you are suitable for getting dental veneers. Generally, dentists prefer using porcelain dental veneers only on people who have healthy teeth. Here, ‘healthy teeth’ implies the ones that are free from bacteria, plaque, and erosion. A porcelain veneer can rectify a tooth gap a chipped tooth or a broken tooth. Anything beyond this needs other dental treatments.

Cost of porcelain veneers

A vital factor in installing porcelain veneers is its cost. The cost of porcelain veneers varies from one dental clinic to another. Besides, it is based on some factors like:

• The oral health of the patient
• The needs of the patient
• The location of the dental clinic
• The complications of the patient’s dental condition
• The experience and skill of the dentist

Final thoughts

Therefore, porcelain veneers are an easy solution for your dental errors. They give your teeth a natural look and aesthetic appeal to bring perfection to your smile. If you are interested in installing porcelain veneers, connect with the Smile Dental Clinic in London now.