Dental Veneers For Heavily Stained Teeth

Improving the appearance of stained or chipped teeth.

The teeth whitening procedure we offer at our Bedford dental practice is an excellent method of improving the whiteness of patient’s teeth in many circumstances. For some patients though, its benefits may be limited, or not even practical at all due to the condition of their teeth.

Severe staining of the teeth, such as that caused by many years of heavy smoking, can be improved with a whitening procedure but may not produce the whiteness that a patient had hoped for. Equally, where the teeth are chipped or cracked, a whitening procedure, whilst improving the colour of the teeth, may also draw more attention to other defects.

For patients in this situation, dental veneers can offer an excellent solution.

What is a dental veneer?

Dental veneers are fine layers of porcelain which are produced to match the appearance of your natural teeth. Described by some as ‘false fingernails for the teeth’, they are used to replace the equivalent thickness of damaged enamel on the patient’s teeth. At The Dental Centre Bedford, with the use of Cerec technology, patients can have veneers produced whilst they wait (approximately one hour), rather than having to wait for them to be produced at an external dental laboratory. This also prevents the need for a second visit to our dental practice.

The procedure

The first stage in fitting dental veneers is to remove a very fine layer of the damaged enamel from the patient’s teeth. This is done using a dental burr and is carried out using a local anaesthetic. Once this has been done, digital scans are taken and the information fed into the Cerec system. From these impressions, a personalised dental veneer is produced from a single block of porcelain.

Finally, the new veneer is attached to the prepared tooth using a dental adhesive and is then trimmed and polished to give the tooth a natural looking appearance.

Aftercare

Whilst a dental veneer cannot decay as it is made from an artificial material, the rest of the tooth is still vulnerable. If this happens, the foundation for the veneers may be affected causing the veneer to be displaced. So it is important to brush and floss as normal to minimise the risk of decay and gum disease to keep your veneers in great condition. Generally, dental veneers last for around ten years and provide both an aesthetic and a strong option for patients with damaged or badly stained teeth who are seeking a nicer smile.

For more information about dental veneers, or to arrange a consultation with one of our dentists, please call The Dental Centre Bedford on 01234 819868.