Porcelain Veeners

   Veneers, also termed dental veneers, are wafer-thin shells bonded to the visible portion of a tooth. A common procedure in cosmetic dentistry, veneers are bonded to the front side of teeth and are routinely used to improve the appearance of teeth that are discolored, worn, chipped, or misaligned.

Porcelain veneers, or laminates, are a fairly recent development in cosmetic dentistry. While durable bonding materials have been available to dentists for many years, porcelain veneer technique utilizes these bonding capabilities to securely attach a thin sheet of porcelain to a tooth. Although porcelain is inherently brittle, when it is firmly bonded to a tooth it becomes very strong and durable.

Porcelain has advantages over other types of cosmetic dental bonding materials. Porcelain veneers create a very life-like tooth appearance because their translucency is similar to that of natural tooth enamel. Teeth have their characteristic appearance because the natural enamel covering is translucent: light striking a tooth's surface is not immediately reflected off, but instead penetrates into the thickness of the enamel. Historically, the available cosmetic dental bonding materials were only semi-translucent: as a result, most of the light striking the tooth did not penetrate into the bonding layer but instead was reflected off the bonding's outer surface. Lacking a tooth's characteristic translucency, there was no sense of depth projected.

Porcelain veneers, because they are glass-like and translucent, mimic the light-handling characteristics of enamel: light striking a porcelain veneer will penetrate its thickness, then be reflected back out once it has reached the opaque cement and tooth structure underneath the veneer. The effect is a sense of depth and very life-like appearance.

In addition, since porcelain is ceramic and therefore glass-like, its surface is extremely smooth and impervious. This makes the surface of the porcelain veneer very resistant to staining. Porcelain veneers can also be used to conceal existing fillings that have become discolored or stained, and in some cases can be used to improve the smile by making it appear more even without the use of braces.