Hi,
I have a chipped front tooth, and some slight spaces in my smile seven years after braces. I am twenty-four and am looking into porcelain veneers from an LVI preferred expert cosmetic dentist. I am wondering how young is too young to get veneers? Am I too young? Should I maybe consider bonding or a combo of Invisalign and bonding?
I just want to make sure I am making the right decision before anyone grinds down my tooth enamel and there is no turning back. Which would look better? Also, is it better/healthier to bond than to veneer? And once you veneer can you ever go back to your natural teeth or will they look weird or not be strong enough on their own?
Thanks,
– Brittany from Colorado
Brittany,
You aren’t too young for porcelain veneers. It’s good to have your teeth fully erupted before you get porcelain veneers, which is at about age 18 or older.
And I hope you’re in the hands of an artistic cosmetic dentist. Being LVI preferred isn’t any kind of a guarantee. It just means that they’ve attended the LVI course and have paid the fee to be on the “preferred” list. Some of the LVI preferred cosmetic dentists are excellent, and some aren’t very good. It’s a mixed bag.
Direct tooth bonding isn’t a good choice for a complete smile makeover. It’s very difficult to do bonding and have it look beautiful, and then it can scratch and get dull and stained too easily. Porcelain veneers don’t stain and they last a long time. But if it is for slight gaps between the teeth, direct bonding could work well.
Orthodontics, including Invisalign, doesn’t work well for spaces between the front teeth because the teeth tend to want to move back to their original position.
I wouldn’t make a decision based on whether or not you could go back to your natural teeth. Why would you want to do that anyway? No one ever goes back to their original teeth once they get a beautiful new smile. Just be sure you have a good cosmetic dentist who does beautiful work.
– Dr. Hall
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About David A. Hall
Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.
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