What are Porcelain Veneers?
Porcelain laminate veneers are thin shells made of ceramic that are placed over the front teeth to improve smile and appearance for long term.
Porcelain veneers are often placed on a set of teeth that are damaged, cracked, mis-aligned, worn out, or stained from the effects of tea, coffee or wine-drinking and tobacco-use.
Unlike dental crowns, porcelain veneer does not require full reduction of prep on all the surfaces of the tooth hence it is more conservative procedure for the tooth.
Porcelain veneers Melbourne can be an excellent cosmetic procedure that can resolve your teeth problems and create new desirable smile that can look and feel natural.
Treatment Procedure
On the initial cosmetic consultation, thorough examination and investigation will be provided to align with your expectation and values.
The veneer procedure then begins with preparation of the affected teeth and taking an impression. During the preparation stage depending on the conditions, reduction of teeth may not be needed always.
This impression will allow porcelain veneers to be custom-made in our dental laboratory for the affected teeth, ensuring a precise fit.
As the veneers are fabricated at a dental laboratory, this procedure requires few visits and it usually takes few weeks to complete the course of treatment.
After the veneers are designed and shaped, they are colour-tinted to match your shade of choice and to blend in with the surrounding teeth.
To ensure we have the accurate colour and shade matching, it may be beneficial for you to visit our dental laboratory prior to insertion of the veneers.
The custom-made porcelain veneers are then tried onto your teeth to confirm for your approval in colour, shape, cosmetics and whether you feel comfortable with them.
Once the cosmetics and fitness are confirmed, they are attached to the prepared teeth with a permanent bonding cement. The damaged and discoloured teeth are now concealed behind the healthy and natural looking porcelain veneers that can last.
Why choose Porcelain Veneers?
Porcelain veneer well resembles tooth enamel in terms of colour and transparency that it is often the most favourable choice in cosmetic dentistry.
Below are the key benefits for choosing porcelain veneers
- Excellent Cosmetics
- Natural Looking Appearance
- Durability
- Quick Treatment Results (2 Weeks)
- Masks Discolouration
- Corrects Mis-alignment & Twisted Teeth
- Corrects Undesirable teeth shape
- Closes Gap between Teeth
- Bite Correction
What are potential downsides of Porcelain Veneers?
Once the porcelain veneers are bonded on the teeth, often you end up having some degrees of sensitivity to hot and cold temperatures.
It is usually due to the removal of thin layer of enamel of the front surfaces of the treated teeth.
This sensitivity usually settles within the first week after the treatment.
Even though the porcelain veneers can be treated like your own teeth however, they are also brittle.
Therefore, if possible, it is advisable to avoid the same excessive chewing stresses on the veneered teeth. Habits such as biting fingernails, chewing ice, or opening beer bottles using the porcelain veneers are to be avoided at all times.
Maintenance of Porcelain Veneers
Once the porcelain veneers are placed, they may need to be followed-up for a post treatment evaluation.
Porcelain veneers also need to be maintained routinely at home and by your dentist. Routine home maintenance care with brushing and flossing is also one of the key factors in good maintenance of porcelain veneers.
In conjunction with your regular dental visits so the dentist can provide good oral hygiene and follow up, this will help with the long durability of the treatment.
For patients with a habit of grinding or clenching teeth, a night guard for the protection of the veneers may be needed.
For more information about Porcelain Veneers in Melbourne, please contact Prahran Family Dental.
