Dental veneers are used to improve your smile and get perfectly shaped teeth. Dental veneers are thin shells of tooth-coloured materials that are bonded to the front of teeth.

Restoring the teeth and providing improvement in appearance is possible through this dental procedure. Dental issues like crooked teeth, broken or chipped teeth or even gaps between the teeth can be corrected. You can regain confidence by using this popular dental treatment.

Dental veneers – The procedure

As with every dental procedure, this aesthetic dentistry process also starts with a consultation with the dentist.

The dentist will shape, cut, or grind down the natural tooth surface in order to get rid of any unsightly stains or restore a broken tooth. A mould is then taken from these new surfaces so that they can be replicated with an acrylic resin material. This process is called “taking impressions.” Once this has been done, impressions are sent off to a lab where technicians will create customized moulds for the patient’s teeth using computerized milling machines before applying them back onto the newly shaped tooth structure.

For this procedure, the teeth and gums should be free from any infection as applying veneers to unhealthy teeth is not possible. The perfectly shaped dental veneers are placed over the teeth that require treatment – this can be one or many teeth.

The first step for this procedure is removing some of the dental enamel. If that is not done, then when dental veneers are applied, they will jut out and teeth will not be uniform in their appearance.

Some dentists will use temporary veneers before placing the permanent ones. The permanent ones are placed after a gluing substance is applied on the surface of the teeth. This will help make the surface a bit rough and then the dental veneers stick to the teeth easily. A special light is applied on the teeth after veneers are placed to speed up the process. The veneers are then polished and perfectly shaped sparkling teeth are obtained.

Dental veneers do not provide only aesthetic value to dental procedures, they provide support to dental health though it is less visible. The appearance of the teeth is important so also the health of the teeth. It is important to have regular consultations with the dentist, so they can gauge the oral health condition and suggest ideal dental procedures to maintain good dental health.

Good oral and dental health can be maintained by following good oral and dental hygiene practices and also following the guidance given by the dentists.

Dental health support by dental veneers

Support to enamel

Dental veneers offer support to the dental enamel. They protect the teeth from damage to the inner pulp region by providing shape and proper colour to the teeth. Dental enamel is the outermost covering of the teeth and gets eroded due to lifestyle and other habits or due to wear and tear. When dental veneers are applied, they give the enamel the much-needed support to protect the teeth. If dental enamel is lost, then they do not grow back. With the dental enamel lost, the teeth are structurally feeble. Probable cracks or chips in the teeth do not happen when dental veneers are there to provide additional support.

Arrests tooth decay

Tooth decay can be arrested by using dental veneers. Misaligned or crooked teeth can be corrected using dental veneers without using braces, this is however in the case of misaligned issues which are minor. When there are crooked teeth, there are high chances of tooth decay taking place. Food or sugary food gets stuck between teeth and stay there. Bacteria are attracted to this and they work on the food debris and release acid. This acid will erode the teeth and slowly bring in decay.

When the misalignment is corrected, the chances for misaligned teeth are reduced. Food does not get stuck as before and tooth decay is stopped. Crooked and misaligned teeth also affect how food is chewed and this also affects the speech of a person. When dental veneers are applied, these major issues are corrected without spending much time or money.

Gaps between teeth

Gaps between teeth bring in other dental issues along with affecting adversely the appearance of a person. When there is a gap between teeth, this will reduce the space available for other teeth. They have to use the available space left. Teeth will also move sometimes if there is a gap and cause misalignment of the teeth. These gaps will also allow food to be stuck in the spaces and bring in decay through bacterial infection. When gaps are filled with dental veneers, these issues are taken care of. The closed gap will not allow any food particles to be stuck in and the teeth will stay in their assigned positions. Decay of the teeth and that of the gums is curtailed by using dental veneers and support is provided in the easiest way possible.

Accidental injuries

Due to accidents, sports or other trauma to the mouth, teeth might get cracked or chipped off.  Some habits like teeth grinding or poor oral hygiene also cause these issues. This situation will affect the pulp region of the tooth. The infection spreads to the core of the teeth and it might need other complex procedures like a root canal to restore them. When dental veneers are placed on teeth that are chipped or cracked, they are covered and not visible outside and they are protected from further damage as well. This offers a treatment that does not involve modification of the teeth but restores dental health at the same time.

Maintain your veneers

It is important to follow good oral hygiene practices and have a healthy lifestyle in order to maintain your dental health. When you use veneers for purely aesthetic purposes, the appearance of teeth changes drastically. Teeth are perfect and shiny- this pushes many people to continue maintaining them that way. Personal oral care practices should be augmented when people have to take extra care with their “new” set of teeth.  In addition, it’s necessary to keep up on regular visits from dentists so they can fix any issues before they become serious problems.