Beauty Bits: What’s The Truth Behind Those Veneers?
Ah hahaha- did y’all catch my pun there? Anyways…
Dr. Samer Othman is a dear friend of mine going all the way back to our days at Stratford Academy. He is one of the nicest people I know and he has opened a new dental practice on Northside Drive.
He and I had the chance to chat recently about his new business when I started asking questions about dentistry and what’s hot in the field right now and he told me that veneers are really big right now. I was actually kind of surprised and of course I figured- if I found that interesting then perhaps y’all would as well!
MIWM: Veneers- I don’t know a whole lot about them, other than they are like fake teeth that are glued to the top of the teeth you have now. How accurate is that?
SO: They are thin pieces of porcelain that are used to recreate the natural look of teeth. They are cemented on the front of each tooth after first removing a small amount of enamel (less than a millimeter). They can be quite accurate depending on the experience of the lab and the dentist. If done properly, they are nearly impossible to tell apart from natural teeth. So I like to think of veneers as a dingy guy putting on a suit. It makes people say, “Wow, he cleans up well.” Veneers greatly improve the appearance of your teeth by simply putting on an attractive covering.
(How did he know that suits are like, my THING? Speaking my language right now!!!)
MIWM: Do you see a lot of people using veneers?
SO: Veneers are becoming more and more popular as the technology is improving. Before, veneers were much thicker, making the preparation of the teeth more invasive. Now, with the removal of the enamel being so minimal, more people are choosing veneers over bonding material. Veneers don’t look overly fake, which is a quality that is becoming more in demand in the dental field.
MIWM: What are some of the advantages of having veneers? What are alternatives to them?
SO: Some of the advantages include: strength, resilience, improved aesthetics, and reinforcement of the tooth structure. Alternatives include placing a crown on the tooth, which is much more invasive and unnecessary in many applications; bonding composite material over the tooth, which is a good temporary fix and is cheaper, however it will need replacing quite often; and lastly there is bleaching, which does not always work if the teeth have deep staining or white spots.
Lumineers are a special brand of veneers that are much thinner. Because they are thinner, they require very little removal of existing tooth structure and the use of no anesthesia in most cases! Because they are so thin, they use translucency and the color of your existing teeth to give a more natural look while still remaining whiter and brighter. They are an excellent alternative to constantly having to whiten your teeth. They can also fortify teeth that have small fracture lines or chips. Check them out online at www.lumineers.com!
The average price is between $800-$1200 per tooth.
MIWM: For comparison purposes, how much would a crown cost per tooth? I know a lot of people who get those.
SO: Crowns run between 1000-1200, however you removed much more tooth structure all around the tooth as opposed to just the front of the tooth, they require anesthesia, and they are rarely done on teeth that otherwise would not need a crown. Lumineers are great for correcting aesthetic problems such as chips, small cracks, discoloration, or slight crookedness.
Well…. I think we all know that our smiles can be the gatekeepers to everything that we want. Shouldn’t they sparkle as well?
Love to all y’all,
Molly
