Tag Archives: porcelain veneers

Dental Hygienist

Did my hygienist ruin my porcelain veneers?

Porcelain veneers are excellent restorations. We can change the color, shape, size, and alignment of the teeth with this technique. It is a fast and long-lasting way to accomplish a “smile makeover.” According to this Dentist In Pflugerville, one of its advantages is the fact that you do minimal preparation to the teeth.

I went to my general dentist after getting porcelain veneers. They were gorgeous, but a week or two after the appointment they started picking up stains. I haven’t done anything different and I’m wondering if something could have happened at my dental appointment to damage them?
Manny L. – Portland, OR

Manny,

It is possible that your hygienist damged your porcelain veneers during the cleaning process. If they used power polishing, such as a prophy jet. The hygienist won’t even know that the they were damaged, because it your teeth will look fine at the end of the appointment. Unfortunately, the glaze will be completely removed. That is why you started picking up stains.

There are other things that can damage veneers in an appointment as well. Ultrasonic scalers and heavy manual scalers can chip the veneers. Pumice can scratch the veneers.

It sounds like you may have gone to a dental hygienist who is unfamilar with cosmetic work.

It’s possible to restore the shine to your veneers using diamond grit polishers. However, this is a very advanced technique. Your average dentist won’t be familiar with it. I would go back to your cosmetic dentist and ask him what he thinks.

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Cosmetic dentistry

Worst smile makeover ever

I got some Lumineers. Let me say I spent a small fortune. I was so excited about this. Unfortunately, I’ve come out of this looking like Mr. Ed.  The teeth are huge and bulky. What do I do?

Elaine – Maryland

Elaine,

I’m sorry for your experience.  Many inexperienced cometic dentists think they can place lumineers, because they’re advertised as simple. Plus, to become a lumineers dentist you just have to take an exam.

What you want to look for when you’re getting a smile makeover, is a great cosmetic dentist. You want someone with extensive post-graduate training in cosmetic dentistry. It’s likely, that you’ll need to have this smile re-done. You could try to get a refund from your current dentist.

Any decent cosmetic dentist will have a smile gallery, where you could see what kind of results they get. You should also look on mynewmile.com. They recommend the best cosmetic dentists in each state.

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Cosmetic dentistry, Orthodontics

Invisalign or Wine…Having a hard time choosing

I’ve been wanting to get my teeth straightened for quite some time. I’ve always been a little uncomfortable with a small gap in my teeth. However, my dentist said I wouldn’t be able to drink wine while I was doing Invisalign. I think I’d rather impale myself then go several months without wine. Is there no wiggle room on this?

Sammie M. – Lawrence, MA

Sammie,

I think you may have misunderstood your doctor…or maybe your doctor is a prohibitionist and he was trying to keep you from drinking. Unlike traditional orthodontics, Invisalign can be removed by the patient. In fact, you’ll remove them every time you eat.  That means there will be no problem with you having a glass of wine with your meal.

He probably meant that you shouldn’t drink wine while your aligners are in. There is a good reason for this. Alcohol is corrosive and if you drink it while your aligner is in, it is likely to pool in the aligners and damage your teeth.

If the only problem with your teeth is a small gap, you have other options. Hopefully, your dentist also mentioned cosmetic dentistry, such as porcelain veneers or dental bonding.  Either of these would fix the gap without the need for orthodontics.

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