Does anyone have information or experience they can share regarding dental venee

1. 61

   americanwriterposted 13 years ago

   Does anyone have information or experience they can share regarding dental veneers ?
   
   I chipped a tooth in the front. Its not awful-yet but the dentist says I have to be careful and eventually need to do something. He suggested veneers to prevent further cracking which leads to the unthinkable..Veneers are expensive but the other problem is I don't know anyone who has them to get real information on how they work, what I need to be concerned about. I don't want to look ridiculous or do something that's a mistake and I'm getting tired of having to be so careful... anything that can be shared is appreciated.

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2. 60

   Terrylee5151posted 13 years ago

   My Daughter had veneers done on her 6 front teeth when she was in high school.  She is now 37 years old and still has the same veneers.  There has been no problems with them that I am aware of.
   
   I do know she could not just get one tooth done because they could not match the color to her other teeth close enough so she ended up getting the 6 top ones done.  Now days, they may be able to match the existing teeth better saving quite a lot of money.
   
   I don't know if this helps you....  She is on her way here right now so if you have any questions ask.

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3. 61

   Lisa HWposted 13 years ago

   This is just a concern I'd have about veneers.   My reply here is more a matter of a question I'd have, rather than answer to that question:
   
   The idea of veneers can seem appealing, but I've read that applying veneers requires damaging the surface of the tooth.  To me, damaging good, strong, teeth in order to do something cosmetic isn't all that appealing after all.  The extent to which the teeth get damaged may be considered "superficial" (it's the surface), but I can't help but wonder if it's ever good to do even minor "damage" to teeth.  Somehow, to me, it seems that even minor damage to teeth might have the potential of eventually weakening them earlier than they otherwise may have been.
   
   I know two adults who chipped a front tooth when they were kids (one younger than the other).  Both of these people are over 55 now, and both have nice smiles.  Both had root canals decades ago.  The chipped/broken tooth was filed down, and a cap was put on it.  If I had a chipped tooth I'd go with that way of dealing with it.  (One of these individuals did have the cap fall off 35-plus years after it was put on, but he had it fixed, and his smile looks good as new again.)
   
   Sometimes I think that when new procedures are out there some dentists may think it's great to suggest something that would give you a "dazzling smile" (versus your own, more natural, regular smile back).   In other words, sometimes I think people can be dazzled by "the latest" without much thought about present or potential future consequences.
   
   My question for the dentist would be, if the teeth are more vulnerable to cracking for some reason; is it wise to possibly compromise what strength they have by doing something that might potentially weaken what's underneath the veneers? (This may be a completely ignorant question, but it's one I'd have before considering veneers.)  In other words, might veneers have the risk of weakening already weak teeth and making them more likely to develop problems closer to the gums, for example?).  Did the tooth chip because something happened that would chip even the healthiest teeth, or did it chip more easily than a stronger tooth ordinarily would?  Is he suggesting a veneer for the one tooth, or all of them - and why?  (Because all the teeth are weak, or because veneers make for a better looking smile overall?)

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