Porcelain Veneers – Houston, TX
Invest in a Picture-Perfect Smile
Cosmetic dentistry isn’t just for the rich or famous anymore. People from all walks of life are transforming their smiles, thanks to veneers in Houston. Although they are attributed with a hefty price tag, they can be the most cost-effective solution to revamp your pearly whites. You can skip long or complex treatment plans and achieve the smile of your dreams after just 2 appointments. Dr. Rich will create the personalized strategy you need to create the beautiful, confident smile you desire.
What Are Dental Veneers?
If you’re embarrassed by chipped, stained, or gapped teeth, you may be a candidate for veneers. A veneer is a thin shell that’s bonded to the front side of a tooth, covering any imperfections to enhance its color, size, and shape. Applying veneers to the teeth visible when smiling provides drastic results by correcting several flaws using one minimally invasive procedure.
Dr. Cher will examine your mouth and learn more about your goals to ensure veneers are right for you. They are often recommended to treat:
- Chipped or cracked teeth
- Stained or discolored teeth
- Abnormally shaped teeth
- Slightly gapped teeth
- Inconsistent tooth surfaces
Your teeth and gums must be healthy before any elective procedures, including porcelain veneers.
The Process of Getting Veneers
After any preparatory treatments, you will be scheduled for the first phase of your procedure. Dr. Cher will clean your teeth before lightly etching their surfaces to remove a small amount of enamel. This is necessary for your veneers to sit flush on your teeth for a stronger bond.
After your cosmetic dentist in Houston has prepped your teeth, she will take an impression of your mouth. The information is sent to the dental lab, where they’ll craft your veneers with the utmost precision, which can take a couple of weeks. In the meantime, Dr. Cher will attach temporary veneers to protect your teeth while you wait. It also allows you to “try on” your new smile.
After the dental lab sends your veneers back to our office, you’ll return for your final appointment. Your temporary restorations are removed and your final veneers are bonded to your teeth. You’ll walk out of the office with a dazzling smile that can last for a decade or longer with the right care, like brushing and flossing. Dr. Cher will explain how to best care for your veneers to get the most out of your investment.
The Benefits of Veneers
Although there are more options than ever to address common aesthetic concerns, veneers continue to rank among the most popular cosmetic treatments because they provide many benefits, including:
- Natural-looking results
- Light-weight
- Minimally invasive procedure
- Quick results
- Durable to last for 10+ years
- Cost-effective method
- Fixes many issues at once
If you are ready to love the smile you see in the mirror, it’s time to see if porcelain veneers are the right treatment for you. Contact our office today to request your consultation for veneers.
Understanding the Cost of Veneers
While plenty of people can get excited about what veneers can offer them, the prospect of payment can potentially make people apprehensive about diving into the procedure. If you’re concerned, don’t worry—we’ll be happy to work with you so that you can make beautiful teeth fit your budget. Here’s what you should know about making this kind of care affordable.
Cost VS Cosmetic Dentistry: What’s Right for Me?
The first thing that you should know is that veneers aren’t the only cosmetic dental treatment available to you. There are plenty of other choices you can make depending on your budget.
If you’re interested in veneers to cover damage to your teeth, direct bonding may be able to help you. Not only is it quick, it also has the benefit of being one of the most affordable cosmetic treatments. If you want a brighter smile, teeth whitening can also be an effective options that’s cheaper than veneers.
However, if you want a whiter, straighter, and flawless smile all at once, veneers can do all of that for you within as little as two appointments. That being the case, it’s easy to see that you’ll get what you pay for if you invest in them.
How to Make Veneers Affordable
As you may be aware, veneers aren’t likely to be covered by insurance, so you may have to explore other options to make veneers fit your budget. We often work with CareCredit, which is a financing firm that can allow you to pay off care in installments. CareCredit offers six-month, no-interest financing to patients who qualify, so if you’re reticent about the cost of care, we can talk to you about whether these financing options are available to you.
Veneer FAQs
Are Veneers Permanent?
Veneers aren’t technically permanent since you will eventually need to replace them. However, the treatment itself is considered irreversible. That’s because to ensure that they fit properly on each tooth, Dr. Rich will need to remove small amounts of enamel, which will not grow back. For this reason, any tooth that has been prepared this way will always need either a crown or a veneer protecting it.
What Happens to the Teeth Under Veneers?
The veneers themselves are perfectly safe for your teeth, and only a minimal amount of enamel must be removed to attach them. Furthermore, the bonding material used by Dr. Rich is also completely safe.
Because the enamel will be covered by the veneer, this treatment will not increase your risk of cavities; however, you still do need to brush and floss regularly to prevent tooth decay from occurring underneath your veneers.
Thankfully, you can protect your teeth and veneers using the same practice: brushing twice a day, flossing daily, limiting your sugar consumption, and visiting Dr. Rich regularly for your preventive dental exams and cleaning.
Is There Anything I Can’t Eat with Veneers?
When you first get your temporary veneers before your permanent prosthetics are created, you’ll need to avoid hard foods such as ice cubes, raw fruits and vegetables, and hard candy, as these could break your restorations. Furthermore, be sure to avoid anything too sticky that can pull the veneers off your teeth.
Temporary veneers also stain much easier than permanent ones, so be careful when consuming darkly pigmented foods and beverages.
Once your permanent veneers are attached, you can expand your diet, but you should still be careful to avoid anything extremely hard or crunchy, and anything too dark.
Should you experience any sensitivity after your veneers are placed, avoid anything too hot or cold until you get the permanent prosthetics.
Finally, be sure to drink alcohol sparingly, as this can weaken the bonding material holding your veneers in place.
Do Veneers Give You a Lisp?
Some patients do experience difficulties pronouncing certain words when they first get veneers, resulting in a temporary lisp.
This is partially due to muscle memory. Your tongue isn’t used to accounting for the veneers when you speak, and that tiny difference in thickness affects the way the tongue moves. Usually, it shows up when you try to pronounce the “s” and “v” sounds.
With a little time, your tongue will adjust on its own, although practicing the pronunciation of certain sounds can speed up the process. In other cases, Dr. Rich may need to slightly reduce the thickness of your veneers in certain areas to make the lisp go away.