Veneers: Enhance Your Smile

Veneers are a cosmetic solution designed to improve the appearance of teeth that are damaged, discoloured, or misshapen.

What Are Veneers?

A veneer is a thin layer of tooth-coloured material that is placed on the front of a tooth to enhance its look. Veneers are often used when a tooth has been affected by decay, trauma, or severe discolouration.

What Will My Dentist Do?

• Check existing fillings in the tooth.
• Remove a very small amount of natural tooth to ensure the veneer fits without feeling bulky. Numbing is often unnecessary.
• If needed, the tooth may be built up with a filling before the veneer process.
• Take an impression using a putty-like material, which is sent to a dental technician to create your custom veneer.
• On your next visit, the dentist will bond the custom-made porcelain veneer to the tooth using a special adhesive.
• Veneers may come loose or break if the tooth is bumped; they can sometimes be reattached or may need replacement.

Some veneers can also be built directly onto the tooth using white filling material. This involves roughening the surface with a mild acid, then applying and shaping the composite in layers.

What Are the Benefits?

• Veneers dramatically improve appearance by covering imperfections with minimal loss of natural tooth structure.
• They protect teeth from further damage caused by acidic wear, which can lead to sensitivity.
• If the underlying tooth is healthy, veneers are often a better cosmetic choice than crowns.