Thinking about porcelain veneers? Consider a teeth-whitening approach first.

In the world of dentistry, porcelain veneers are a rather hot topic. Pick up a magazine or watch TV for very long and you'll probably find an article, show or at least an advertisement that touts the changes that a set of porcelain veneers can make.

Having porcelain veneers placed can be a great way to make cosmetic changes with teeth but it is also pretty big step to take. Your teeth are no longer just teeth but instead teeth with coverings. And as you'll find out as you read through this article, there are issues associated with these coverings (veneers) that means that the course of your dental life will be affected. So, it only makes sense that before a person decides to take this step they should investigate other options. One of these alternatives can start off as simply as utilizing some sort of teeth whitening treatment.

Need more information?
There's a lot of content on Animated-Teeth.com that provides explanations for many of the topics discussed in this lens.

Porcelain dental veneers.

Lumineers porcelain venners.

Whitening your teeth at home.

Teeth whitening at your dentist's office.

Cosmetic tooth bonding.

Removable clear braces.

I should first state that I am not suggesting that just having teeth whitening treatments instead of having porcelain veneers placed will necessarily give the same end result. That will depend on the specifics of the case. Clearly both approaches can be expected to make a color change but of course porcelain veneers offer the added capability of being able to idealize a tooth's shape.

In comparison, teeth whitening treatments can only affect color concerns. But in the situation where a person has relatively minor shape or alignment imperfections, starting with teeth whitening as a means to accomplish a change may be the best option. It very well may be that after a color change has been achieved, something as simple as some minor tooth bonding procedure or orthodontic treatment just using removable appliances can provide a very similar cosmetic outcome as porcelain veneers and one that shouldn't be overlooked as an option.

Of course you won't be able to make a determination about the expected outcome of these two approaches on your own. You will have to discuss matters with your dentist. But if it is determined that a reasonably similar cosmetic end result can be expected with either approach, making changes that start with teeth whitening treatments and then following through with some other relatively minor dental procedures might be the most prudent. Here's why.

It is true that the effects of teeth whitening treatments will fade with time. And due to this effect additional whitening treatments will be needed as years pass. But even considering the cost associated with this retreatment, you still won't spend as much on whitening your teeth as you will if you have a set of porcelain veneers placed.

Now, as discussed above, I have suggested that after teeth whitening treatments you may find that you will need to correct minor tooth shape issues by having dental bonding placed or by making alignment corrections using a removable orthodontic appliance. And these additional services can jack up the cost of your bill, even significantly so. But in light of the other justifications given in this article, even a similar total price may make the teeth-whitening-first approach the best choice.

A dentist's goal is to help their patient's preserve healthy tooth structure. They know that nothing will last longer or provide a patient with better service than their own natural teeth. In most cases, having porcelain veneers placed involves grinding away healthy tooth structure and replacing it with an artificial surface. The integrity of teeth is compromised for purely cosmetic reasons. Working with teeth (such as having veneers placed) can usually be accomplished without complication but things do happen, no matter how rarely. If a more conservative solution exists, why not take advantage of it?

It's true, whitening effects will fade with time and retreatment will usually be needed, but consider the alternative. No dental restorations last forever. Depending upon your current age, there will almost certainly be a point where the appearance of your veneers has degraded and you will have them replaced. Quite possibly even several times over the course of your lifetime. In between sets, there will always be the possibility that you will experience a veneer breaking or coming off. Bottom-line, why choose to have veneers placed if an equivalent (or nearly so) less maintenance intense procedure is available (such as orthodontic realignment or minor tooth bonding). Yes, bonding won't last forever either but fixing it can often involve repair as opposed to veneers which always involves replacement. Additionally, any changes made with dental bonding will be less expensive, quicker and easier.

Say you try teeth whitening first and you do get some effect but not one that is as spectacular as you wanted. Consider this. Porcelain veneers can be used to make dramatic color changes with teeth but the greater the degree of this change the more opaque they will need to be. The more opaque a porcelain veneer is, the less lifelike it will appear. This means, if you try whitening first yet then decide to go ahead and have porcelain veneers placed, the porcelain veneers won't have to mask such a dark underlying tooth color. This means they can be relatively more translucent and therefore can be expected to appear more lifelike.

So that's my two cents. Porcelain veneers serve a purpose but they aren't necessarily the only game in town.
Porcelain veneers are great for dictating the overall cosmetic appearance of a case but at the expense of making irreversible changes with teeth and a lifetime of maintenance. There's a saying that "less is more" and when it comes to teeth I would agree. If your dentist thinks you can get a similar appearance with porcelain veneers or teeth whitening based approach, give serious thought to the latter.


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