Pros And Cons Of Covering A Chipped Front Tooth With Veneers

Health & Medical Blog

If you have a chipped front tooth, one option your dentist may offer for dealing with the issue is covering your front teeth with veneers. Veneers are thin pieces of porcelain (or sometimes, composite resin) that are attached to the front of the tooth. They make it so that when someone looks at you, they see the veneer, rather than the real tooth behind it.

While veneers will camouflage your chipped tooth so you don't have to feel self-conscious about your smile, they have advantages and disadvantages as a fix-up option. Keep these factors in mind as you decide whether veneers are the right solution for you.

Pros of Veneers

They are permanent.

Veneers are not a temporary fix, as some people believe them to be. Since your dentist will have to remove a thin, 1/2 millimeter layer of your tooth enamel in order to attach the veneers, once you have them on, you have to keep them. Many patients keep their veneers for 15 or more years, and when a veneer does chip or become otherwise damaged, your dentist can replace it.

They don't stain.

Porcelain does not stain, so no matter how much coffee you drink, your veneers will stay the same color forever. Since generally, if one front tooth is covered in a veneer, the other one of the pair is, too, your front teeth will always be the same color. This would not always be the case if you chose to have your chipped tooth covered in a cap, rather than a veneer. The cap might not stain, but your other tooth would -- so several years down the road, your smile may not be uniform anymore.

They can cover a chip of any size.

There are various other options for dealing with a chipped tooth -- filing it down, filling it with dental composite, capping it -- but each of these options typically works only for chips of certain sizes. A veneer can be used to camouflage a chip of any size. Of course, if your chip is very large, your dentist may need to do a bit of repair work to the tooth before the veneer is applied, but it's not a concern if that repair work does not leave the tooth looking nice, since the veneer will cover it.

Cons of Veneers

You may still feel the roughness of the chip behind the veneer.

If your chip is small, your dentist will likely just leave it as is (or smooth it out somewhat) and then put the veneer on. You'll still be able to feel the chipped tooth when you run your tongue over it. If you think this is going to be an issue, you may want to explore other repair options, such as having the tooth capped.

You do have to be careful when wearing veneers.

They don't require you to completely overhaul your lifestyle, but there are some things you'll need to be careful about when wearing them:

• You'll need to wear a mouth guard when playing sports, or if you grind your teeth at night, so you don't accidentally pop the veneers off.
• Hot and cold beverages may cause some sensitivity for a while as you get used to the veneers.
• You'll want to avoid very crunchy foods like ice and nuts, so you don't crack the veneers.

Other repair options, like dental bonding and a cap, don't generally require such restrictions.

You may have to go to a specialist to get veneers.

Veneers are typically considered a cosmetic dental procedure, so your regular dentist may not have experience applying them. You'll likely need to see a cosmetic dental specialist. This may mean driving a bit further or having to wait a little while to get an appointment. Your regular dentist can recommend a specialist dentist to apply your veneers and can also offer additional guidance as to whether this is the right treatment choice for you.

For more information, contact New Image Cosmetic & Family Dentistry or a similar location.

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30 September 2015