Dental Veneers
Do you struggle with the appearance of your smile? If you want a brighter, more uniform smile, porcelain dental veneers are a cosmetic dentistry treatment that can transform your teeth.
If you have chips, cracks, stains, discoloration, or more, you may feel self-conscious about your appearance, which may affect your confidence in many areas of your life. With veneers, it’s possible to cover up multiple imperfections in a couple of visits to our office.
Learn more about the benefits of veneers or call today to request a consultation!
What Are Veneers?
Porcelain veneers are wafer-thin, custom-made shells of tooth-colored materials designed to cover the front surface of teeth to improve appearance. These shells are bonded to the front of the teeth, changing their color, shape, size, or length.
We recommend this treatment to anyone experiencing discoloration that cannot be fixed with whitening or whose teeth are damaged. Porcelain veneers are also an option if you’re unhappy with the shape or look of your natural teeth.
Crafting Your Custom Smile
Our doctors are extensively trained on ceramic layering by world-famous ceramist Yasu Kawabe. This training allows them to create a custom veneer for you. We will never use a generic mold to create your veneers.
Your veneers will complement your face, helping your smile look bright and your entire face appear youthful. We craft dental restorations specifically for your smile and to complement your appearance.
Should You Consider Veneers?
Veneers are the right choice for many patients. Before receiving veneers, our dental team will discuss options with you to determine if veneers best meet your needs.
Veneers work best to resolve:
While veneers are a good option for patients with many cosmetic imperfections in their smile, keep in mind that they are permanent. You can’t remove them on your own. While you’ll still have your natural teeth, they often need to be filed down to fit the veneers. So, a dentist will need to replace them if they become damaged.
If veneers aren’t the right choice, we also provide other options, including dental crowns, bridges, and dental implants.
Am I a Candidate for Dental Veneers?
Being a candidate for dental veneers often requires that you:
Issues like tooth grinding and smoking can be resolved or mitigated before you have your veneers placed. We even offer mouth guards to protect your teeth if you grind your teeth when you sleep.
If you are worried about undergoing a dental procedure, we also offer dental sedation. We understand that dental procedures, even if they are not very complicated, can be daunting. If you would like to learn more about our sedation dentistry, visit our page.
The Benefits of Dental Veneers
Dental veneers are a wonderfully versatile approach to restoring your smile. They are not as extensive as crowns, but are more permanent than in-office teeth whitening, making them a solution for many things. Here are some of the many benefits of dental veneers from Middle Tennessee Prosthodontics in Brentwood, Tennessee:
- Comfortable: Because our veneers are thin, they will not change how your teeth feel, only how they appear.
- Customizable: We create each veneer for you and your smile needs, to create a perfectly crafted cosmetic appearance.
- Easy to Care For: Veneers are cared for the same way your natural teeth are, making them low-maintenance.
- Versatile: Veneers can fix a variety of issues, from minor misalignment to major discoloration.
- Long-Lasting: Veneers last 10–15 years on average, longer if they are cared for properly.
- Durable: Our veneers resist cracks and staining, so they can enhance your smile without you worrying about them.
- Cost-Effective: Veneers are a permanent solution for cosmetic issues, so you don’t have to replace them or refresh them often.
Are There Oral Health Benefits of Veneers?
One reason we may suggest veneers is for minor damage to your enamel or tooth sensitivity. This can be an easier solution than crowns, which require more prep and cover your entire tooth. Veneers can protect the worn-down tooth and prevent further damage.
Veneers also act as protective shields for your teeth, so even if you don’t have enamel damage, they can prevent sensitivity or damage as your teeth age.
See Our Patients’ Before and Afters
We create veneers that are custom for your smile—not anyone else’s. Here are some of the amazing smiles that we have been able to improve with veneers.
Why Choose Us for Dental Veneers?
Drs. McLaughlin Miller, Patel, and Peterman at Middle Tennessee Prosthodontics want you to feel great about your smile. As part of their advanced prosthodontic training, they received additional hands-on education in crafting veneers, including shaping and stacking porcelain.
They received in depth hands-on training from world-renown ceramist Yasu Kawabe. This expertise allows them to ensure your veneers are not only clinically precise but also beautifully customized to complement your features.
The Veneer Process
Placing porcelain veneers takes two appointments. During your first visit, your dentist will examine your mouth and prepare the teeth while removing small bits of enamel. Then, they will take impressions of your teeth and send them to a lab to create the custom veneers. While waiting for your permanent veneers, you’ll receive temporary ones.
Once your veneers are created, you’ll return to our office for the permanent placement. Your dentist will permanently bond the thin shells to your teeth using dental cement. They can then make adjustments to ensure the correct fit and shaping. You can return to your normal life right after the appointment.
Caring for Your Completed Smile
Porcelain veneers are designed to be strong, stain-resistant, and long-lasting, but just like your natural teeth, they require proper care to keep them looking their best.
To protect your veneers, maintain a consistent oral hygiene routine that includes twice-daily brushing with a non-abrasive toothpaste and daily flossing. Avoid biting into hard foods or using your teeth as tools, as this can place unnecessary stress on the porcelain. If you clench or grind your teeth, our team may recommend a custom night guard to preserve the integrity of your restorations.
We also encourage regular dental visits for cleanings and evaluations. Our hygienists use tools and techniques that are safe for veneers, and your dentist will monitor your smile to ensure every detail remains in place. With attentive care and expert maintenance, your veneers can remain as beautiful as the day they were placed.
Sedation Dentistry for Your Veneer Process
We understand that dentistry can be scary or uncomfortable, even for the simple process of receiving veneers. Our office offers nitrous oxide, also called laughing gas, to ease your fears and concerns. For those with severe dental anxiety, we also offer IV sedation if necessary.
You can learn more by visiting our sedation dentistry page or by contacting our office to learn more about your options.
Veneers vs. Crowns: Which One Is Right for You?
Both porcelain veneers and dental crowns are excellent solutions for enhancing your smile, but they serve different purposes and are used in different situations. At Middle Tennessee Prosthodontics, our board-certified specialists will help you choose the option that fits your goals and your oral health needs.
Veneers are thin porcelain shells that cover only the front surface of your tooth. They’re ideal for patients who want to improve the shape, color, or minor alignment of their teeth. Because veneers require less enamel removal than crowns, they’re considered a more conservative cosmetic solution.
Crowns, on the other hand, are full-coverage restorations that encase the entire tooth. We often recommend crowns when a tooth has significant damage, decay, or structural compromise. Crowns restore both function and appearance and are a more protective solution when strength is a top priority. Crowns can also be placed on top of implants, but veneers cannot.
Both options offer a major improvement in the appearance of your smile; veneers offer the most versatility when it comes to a cosmetic approach instead of a restorative one.
Veneers FAQs
We understand that any dental procedure comes with questions. You can always ask our dentists your questions during your consultation or call our office.
Schedule a Consultation Today!
Veneers are a good option for patients who want to improve their smiles without multiple procedures. With veneers, you can achieve the Hollywood smile you’ve always wanted in just a couple of appointments.
Wondering if veneers are the right treatment for you? The best way to know is to set up a consultation with Middle Tennessee Prosthodontics. Our dentists will examine your teeth and create an individualized treatment plan, which could include veneers.
You deserve to have a smile you love! Contact us today to request an appointment in Brentwood!