Smile Lifting – Veneers

The average lifespan of a dental veneer is about 10 years. With proper care and treatment, that
time frame can be lengthened, to up to 20 years. If one of the following occurs, you may have to
replace your veneers early: Your dental veneers are chipped or cracked, or they are simply worn
down.

Porcelain veneer does not damage your natural teeth by any means. In fact, it protects your
natural teeth from further decaying as well as other damages. Fragile teeth can be dangerous, as
they can be broken down anytime. With veneer, porcelain lamination is added around the teeth to
give strength.

Veneers are the gold standard of cosmetic dentistry.

They consist of very thin layers, like a contact lens, of ceramic they are placed in front of the teeth
and that match exactly the dental enamel giving a very natural result.

They are a very tooth friendly procedure as they require minimal or no tooth preparation and only.
on the front part of the tooth.
Very natural and highly aesthetic results.
Longevity they last between 10 to 20 years.

It varies a lot mainly with the number of teeth involved.
Usually a ceramic veneer will cost around €600-€800 per unit which is a lot more than the
alternative the composite veneers that are about two €250-€500 a unit. Despite this cost
difference I never use composite veneers because they don’t come close to ceramics in terms of
aesthetic results and longevity.

How many veneers your place depends on the cases: I do a lot of two or four veneers in the
upper incisors associated with tooth whitening of the rest of the teeth, or you may have to place
six veneers from canine to canine or even 10 veneers, the full smile lift
Involving all the upper teeth visible when you smile (from second premolar to 2nd premolar).

To do a Smile lift giving a younger look, correcting color, small fractures, spaces between teeth.
Anesthetic spaces between teeth.
Alignment of crowding teeth without braces. Etc…

Only a dentist with training and cosmetic dentistry can answer this question.
After seeing you, taking pictures, understanding what your expectations are, he will tell you if
veneers are for you and how many do you need.

Under most circumstances, veneers are placed over the top teeth, as these are the ones that
show most when you smile. If there is a case of dental trauma to just one tooth, then a single
veneer may be all that is needed. Conversely, if you are looking for a full smile makeover,
anywhere from 4-8 veneers are common

After the initial evaluation which will define how many veneers and in which teeth they will be
placed the first impressions are made so that the lab technician can make the temporary veneers,
These have already the general shape of the final ones which allows us to see how it works on the
patient’s mouth.

On a second appointment the dentist will make minor reductions on the front part of your teeth
( in some cases no reduction is needed: no-prep Veneers).

Final impressions are made and temporaries are placed. These Impressions go to the lab for the
Ceramist to create the Veneers.

Meanwhile the patient leaves the office with a different smile, with temporary Veneers. This
the most fragile time of the process as temporary Veneers are not strong and special attention
must be paid, like not biting with your front teeth while you have them as they can fall or break.

About three weeks to a month the third appointment is scheduled to place the Ceramic Veneers.
About two weeks later a fourth appointment is scheduled to take the final pictures and do minor
adjustments in case they are necessary.

After you’ve place your veneers you should basically care for them the same way you care for
your natural teeth:

Good oral hygiene with a good brushing technique and the use of dental floss.
You can basically do with veneers what you do with your natural teeth : bite apples, etc but you
shouldn’t do things you that you shouldn’t do with your natural teeth either like trying to open
something with your teeth, break something with your teeth, which can chip a veneer the same
way as a natural tooth.

In case of patients with bruxism (grinding your teeth at night) it is mandatory to sleep with a night
guard to protect the veneers and your natural teeth from further grinding.

It is extremely rare that Dental Veneers fall off. If this happens they can be placed back by your
Dentist. If it happens frequently it means that the Dentist hasn’t done a proper job and is not
familiar with Dental Adhesion.