Dental veneers are custom-made shells placed on the front surface of your teeth. They improve the appearance of your teeth. Veneers can be made from composite materials or from porcelain. Veneers are mostly used for cosmetic purposes to mask minor chips, cracks, and stains on teeth. However, they also serve a functional role when treating periodontal disease. Read on and learn more about these restorations.

Dental Veneer Cost

Our team at Dental One Care in Sterling Heights MI explain that the cost of your dental veneers will depend on the specific type of veneer that you select as discussed below;

Direct/Composite Veneers. Direct veneers are applied by painting a composite coating onto the prepared tooth surface. This type of veneer typically costs about $250 per tooth and the procedure can be completed in one visit. Composite veneers last for about five to seven years before needing to be replaced.

Indirect/Porcelain Veneers. Indirect veneers are usually made at an external lab, so the procedure normally requires you to make two visits to the dentist. The process of getting these veneers is more demanding, so they tend to be significantly more costly than direct veneers. For example, porcelain veneers may cost about $1,000 for each tooth. Porcelain veneers have a superior service life since they can last between ten and fifteen years, or even more depending on how well you take care of them.

Steps When Getting Dental Veneers

As already mentioned, direct veneers can be placed in one appointment while indirect or porcelain veneers require two visits. These are the general steps to getting porcelain or ceramic veneers.

• Dental Health Assessment

This usually happens during the first visit when you go to the dentist in Sterling Heights MI. During this step, the dentist will examine you and even take dental x-rays to ascertain that you don’t have any underlying dental health problem that needs to be addressed before the veneers are placed.

• Shade Selection

Once the Sterling Heights dentist finds you a suitable candidate for veneers, he or she will select the most appropriate shade under natural light. This is done to ensure that once the veneers are placed, they will be indistinguishable from your natural teeth.

• Tooth Preparation

Tooth preparation entails shaving off a tiny amount of tooth enamel from the front surface of the tooth. This is in order to create space for the veneer. The purpose of this step is to ensure that the restored tooth will not appear to be larger or thicker than the surrounding untreated ones. This preparation may be done after a local anesthetic is applied to keep the process as pain-free as possible.

• Taking Dental Impressions

The dentist in Sterling Heights, MI will then get a mold or impression of your tooth. This mold, together with the shade selected, will be sent to the lab that will make the veneer. In a week or two, the external lab will send back the custom veneer and your dentist will notify you to come for the final placement.

• Temporary Veneer Placement

Your dentist in Sterling Heights will place temporary veneers on the teeth that have been prepped. These temporaries protect the teeth from damage and preserve the prepared surfaces until the permanent veneer is placed. 

• Permanent Veneer Placement

This happens during your second visit to Dental One Care approximately one or two weeks after the first visit when the previous steps were completed. During this step, your dentist will remove the temporary veneers, clean your teeth thoroughly and etch the tooth so that the adhesive substance attaching the veneer to the tooth works. If the dentist is satisfied that the shade and dimensions of the permanent veneer, he or she will attach that veneer to your tooth. The dentist will then use a special light to expedite the curing process of the adhesive.

• Preservation

This step involves coming to Dental One Care for a follow-up visit during which the dentist checks the veneers to confirm that everything is as it should be. Several weeks after the veneers were placed, you will have a follow-up appointment.  

All that you need to do after your dentist gives you the all-clear when you go for the follow-up visit is to maintain good oral hygiene by brushing and flossing as recommended. You should also seek teeth cleaning services by our professionals every six months. The benefits of veneers include masking the discolorations and closing minor gaps between the teeth. Remember, getting dental veneers is an irreversible process. Make sure to discuss all non-invasive options with an expert at Dental One Care and act on their recommendation.