Porcelain Veneers Resist Staining

In most cases two dental appointments in our Standish office will be required for the veneering process. Usually the time span lying between these two visits will be two to three weeks.

Trimming a tooth for a porcelain veneer.

When a tooth is prepared to receive a porcelain veneer the enamel on the front side of the tooth, the side where the porcelain veneer will be bonded, must be trimmed back. In most cases the goal will be to trim the tooth's surface about the same amount as the thickness of the veneer that will ultimately be bonded into place. This way the overall size of the tooth will not be changed dramatically.

Usually the amount of tooth enamel that will be shaved off is on the order of .5 to .7 millimeters. This amount is similar to that of the thickness of a chicken egg's shell. And, when compared to most other dental procedures, this is a very small amount. Before this trimming is begun, you and Dr. Bannan will decide if your tooth should be numbed with a local anesthetic ("novocaine").

Taking an impression of the trimmed tooth.

Once the proper amount of enamel has been trimmed, we will need to take an impression (cosmetic molds) of your teeth using impression putty. This copy of your teeth will then be sent to a dental laboratory which will in turn make your porcelain veneer. Depending on what arrangements we have made with the dental laboratory, the amount of time required to fabricate a porcelain veneer is usually in the neighborhood of three weeks.

After the tooth has been prepared for the porcelain veneer

In those cases where your veneer will be created by a dental laboratory technician, you will have to wait the one or two weeks while your veneer is being made. The question at this point in the procedure is whether or not a temporary veneer will be placed on your tooth during this waiting period.

Those cases where no temporary veneer is placed:

Because some enamel has been trimmed from your tooth you might experience an increase in sensitivity to hot and cold foods and beverages. This is very normal. You simply need to moderate your exposure to these types of items.

It may be possible that we can create a temporary veneer for you to wear during that time period while the dental laboratory is fabricating your porcelain veneer. There are certainly reasons why we may be hesitant to do so, not the least of which is that these temporaries are often dislodged fairly easily.

If you feel that it is of paramount importance that you do have a temporary veneer placed on your tooth, you absolutely must discuss this fact with our office in advance of the appointment when your dental work is begun. We will need to set aside enough treatment time so the task of creating and placing the temporary veneer can be completed.

The cost of the temporary veneer is usually not included in our office's standard fee for porcelain veneers. If your dental work requires additional treatment time, such as that needed to place a temporary veneer, we will need to adjust our fee accordingly.

The pre-cementation evaluation of the porcelain veneer:

Before Dr. Bannan can attach your new porcelain veneer (porcelain laminate) into place he will need to evaluate how accurately it fits on your tooth. To do so, he will place the veneer on your tooth, inspect it, remove the veneer and trim it, and/or adjust it if necessary, until they are satisfied with its fit. In most cases anesthetic is not needed for this step or any of the other steps listed above.

Evaluating the porcelain veneer's overall shape:

When your porcelain veneer is fabricated it will be made so it has the "ideal" shape. Even so, you and one of our dentists may come to the conclusion that certain aspects of the veneer need to be shortened, squared off, or rounded so to make the veneer's appearance even more pleasing.

Evaluating the porcelain veneer's color.

One of our dentists will have chosen the shade of the porcelain that was used to fabricate your porcelain veneer because he felt it came closest to matching the shade of your tooth's neighboring teeth. However, because porcelain veneers are translucent, the precise color a veneer will possess can be adjusted by changing the shade of the cement that is used to bond the veneer into place.

Dr. Bannan will choose a cement that he feels will provide the best color match for the veneer as compared to its neighboring teeth. Once a cement shade has been selected, he will place some of the cement's corresponding "trial paste" into the veneer. Trial pastes have the same color properties as their corresponding cement. Once the trial paste has been placed into the veneer the veneer can be placed on its tooth so you can see how the shade of the cement will affect the veneer's overall coloration. If you do not feel that the color of the veneer is a good match with your other teeth we can repeat this same type of evaluation using other shades of trial pastes, until the right color of cement is found.

It is important for you to realize that you must be happy with the veneer's shade before Dr. Bannan proceeds with the cementation process. After a porcelain veneer has been bonded into place it cannot be removed.

Bonding the porcelain veneer into place.

Once you and Dr. Bannan have determined that the shape and shade of your porcelain veneer are appropriate it can be bonded into place. First the porcelain veneer will be cleaned and prepared for the cementation process, then, your tooth will also be cleaned, usually by polishing it with a rubber cup or brush.

The enamel surface of your tooth will be etched with an acidic etching gel. At a microscopic level this etching process creates a very roughened texture on the surface of the enamel, just like glass that has been etched has a "frosted" texture. This surface roughness allows the cement to create a very strong bond with the tooth's surface, and it is a hallmark of dental bonding technique.

At this point cement will be placed into the porcelain veneer and the veneer will in turn be seated on your tooth. Once our dentist has ensured that the veneer is in its proper position he will cure the cement by way of shining a special light on your tooth. This light (which is usually blue in color) passes through the translucent veneer to the cement which lies underneath. The light activates a catalyst in the cement, causing it to cure in just a few moments.

At this point, the porcelain veneer is securely bonded into place on your tooth. There will probably be at least some excess cement present at the edges of the veneer that we will need to trim off and polish down. You and Dr. Bannan or Dr. will also need to evaluate the veneer's precise contours and trim or reshape them as you feel is needed. Also, we will spend time evaluating your bite and making sure that the veneer doesn't interfere with it.

The porcelain veneer post-cementation appointment.

We will ask that you return to our office about one week after your porcelain veneer has been bonded into place. We will evaluate how your gums have responded to the presence of your new veneer and if you feel that the overall shape of your veneer needs to be adjusted, that can be performed during this appointment also.