Enhance Your Smile With Dental Veneers!

Boosting smile aesthetics with this popular treatment in Canterbury

A smile can really lift our day and a great looking smile even more so. It is said that the first thing that most of us notice about other people is their smile, and we tend to be drawn towards those that do, rather than people who smile less. There can be many different reasons, of course, why some people smile more than others. Our health, money and relationship worries can make smiling more or less likely for periods of our life.

Another key reason why some people smile less than others is that they are embarrassed about their teeth. Even subconsciously, if our teeth are crooked or discoloured, we are likely to be more self conscious about them and probably smile less than we normally would.

Thankfully, with the range of cosmetic dental treatments available at Bradley and Partners Dental and Implant Clinic, there are a number of ways in which we can help you to improve your smile. In today’s blog, we are going to take a look at one of these popular options in the form of dental veneers.

Origin of dental veneers

Teeth veneers were one of the first procedures to be used to improve the appearance of teeth. This happened during the Hollywood era when filmmakers discovered a problem when shooting close up scenes as many of the actors, as people did at that time, smoked quite heavily. This inevitably led to their teeth becoming heavily stained. This certainly wasn’t ideal when zooming in for a close up romantic shot!

To resolve this problem, California dentist Charles Pincus came up with the idea of dental veneers. Unlike modern ones, these were temporary and simply stuck onto the surface of the teeth for filming purposes only. It is thought that this is where the term  ‘Hollywood Smile’ originates from. Over time, clinical research has enabled veneers to be used more widely and also improved both their appearance and durability.

Modern dental veneers

There are two types of veneers that are used today. The first is a composite veneer. This is a cheaper option but perhaps not the best long term solution. Composite material is not as strong as porcelain and is also slightly porous, meaning it can become stained and discoloured more easily. Porcelain on the other hand, is a very strong and stain resistant material that, once fitted, can last the patient for ten years or more providing that they are looked after correctly.

It is now possible to get dental veneers that fit directly on top of the current tooth surface without the need for any surgery. These are not suitable for all situations though and in most cases a certain amount of work will need to be carried out for the best result.

The fitting of teeth veneers is typically a two stage process. Your first treatment appointment will involve preparing the teeth for the veneers. To do this, we will give you a local anaesthetic to minimise any discomfort you might feel. A dental burr is then used to ‘shave’ away a very fine layer from the surface of the tooth. Once this has been done, impressions will be taken of the teeth and these are then sent to a laboratory for the preparation of your new veneers. During this time, you will be fitted with temporary veneers to protect your teeth.

Preparing the veneers usually takes around a week or two and you will then be invited back to our Canterbury dental practice to have them fitted. This is a straightforward process that involves the removal of the temporary veneers and the attachment of the new ones using a strong clinical adhesive. Finally, the new veneers will be trimmed and polished to leave you with a natural looking and attractive new tooth surface!

What are veneers used for?

Most commonly, dental veneers are used to whiten teeth in cases where a regular teeth whitening procedure would not really be sufficient. This is most likely to occur where a person has been a regular smoker or even consumes a lot of tea or red wine. They can also be used though to correct other defects such as cracks or chips in the tooth surface. Finally, they can be used on occasion for minor orthodontic corrections; one of the most common being a closure of gaps between the front two teeth, also known as a diastema.

Veneers are, of course, just one of a wide range of cosmetic dental treatments that we have available to help you have more attractive teeth. The best way to discover how you can improve your smile is to have a consultation with one of our experienced team members who will discuss your requirements and offer advice on the best way to proceed.

With Covid restrictions continuing to ease, at least for the time being, perhaps now is a good time to have a smile that you are proud to show off to the world. If you would like to arrange an initial discussion with one of the dentists at Bradley and Partners Dental and Implant Clinic, please call us today on 01227 463529.