High Tech For High-Quality Dental Care
July 6, 2016
Are You At Risk Of Periodontal Disease?
July 11, 2016
“1, 2, 3 … Say cheese.”
How many times has someone asked you to smile for a picture?
Do you flash your pearly whites, or do you keep your lips pressed together so no one will see your teeth?
At Sunrise Dental, we do not think anyone should feel ashamed of their teeth or embarrassed to smile. This is why we offer cosmetic dentistry at our Raleigh, Cary, Chapel Hill, and Durham dentist offices.
Among our cosmetic services, veneers may be the most versatile. A good set of veneers can solve a lot of issues at the same time.
What Veneers Are
In a general sense, veneers are a thin layer used to cover something to change its appearance.
In furniture, wood veneers are thin strips of wood that are applied to the exterior of a product to give it the appearance that it is made of something else.
In dentistry, veneers are a thin layer of porcelain that can be bonded to the front of someone’s teeth. This can give that person the appearance of a smile very different from the one they got from Mother Nature.
The materials used to make veneers are designed to be durable, yet look natural. When they are first put in place, you may be surprised just how different your smile looks. (You did have your old smile for years or decades, after all.)
Once you get used to your new smile, you may notice that you feel more comfortable posing for “selfies” and other pictures. You may even start to feel more confident about talking to people, working to advance in your career, or going on a date with someone you are interested in romantically.
Kinds Of Veneers
We mentioned above that we offer a couple kinds of veneers in our practice.
Typical porcelain veneers require a little preparation before they can be placed over your teeth.
Before we do anything, we will evaluate the health of your teeth to make sure you will be a good candidate to receive veneers. This is not a problem for a vast majority of patients.
The process starts by when we remove a thin layer of the enamel from the front of your teeth. This creates room for your veneers to fit without affecting your appearance.
A scan of your teeth can be made to send to the dental lab. This allows them to precisely design a set of veneers that are custom-fitted for your teeth.
When the veneers are ready, you will come back to see us, and we will use a special material to bond your veneers in place.
In just a few weeks, you could change from having “bad” teeth to a Hollywood smile. (We can’t promise you any movie deals, however.)
We also know that some patients, such as people with sensitive teeth, may not like the idea of removing enamel to get their teeth ready for veneers.
If you are one of these patients, then we would encourage you to ask about Lumineers instead. Lumineers are the thinnest veneers available today.
Because they are so then, most of the time we don’t have to do anything more than cleaning your teeth. When your Lumineers are finished, they can be bonded to your teeth just like other veneers.
How Veneers Improve Smiles
The specifics will depend on your situation, but here are some examples of patients who could benefit from a set of porcelain veneers.
A man who has been taking medication that causes his teeth to turn yellower. Since this isn’t a stain, teeth whitening may not be able to help in this case. Veneers, on the other hand, are perfectly suited to help him restore his smile.
A woman with a gap between a few of her teeth feels shy about going to job interviews. Veneers can fill in those spaces to give her a complete smile.
A lifelong coffee drinker has the teeth that proven he’s had two cups a day for more than a decade. That’s in addition to his crooked teeth and the tooth that still has a chip in it from a bad hop during a softball game.
Veneers can help him fix all those problems so his smile looks white, straight, and whole.
What Could Veneers Do For Your Smile?
If you have been considering cosmetic dentistry for any reason, schedule a consultation at the nearest Sunrise Dental location. We can help you find out if veneers or another service can give you the smile that you want to see in the mirror.
Call any of our offices or fill out our online contact form to take your first step toward your new smile.