Porcelain Veneers vs. Bonding: Which Fits Your Smile in Bethlehem?
You can see that thinking in his work with brass and woodwind players. As our dental care for wind musicians page explains, a trumpet player's chipped front tooth can be bonded to look great and still change how he plays, and veneers that add half a millimeter to a horn player's teeth can affect her highest notes. Dr. Lambert encourages musicians to bring their instruments to the office to show him how they play.
If a chipped, stained or uneven front tooth has you hiding your smile, you've probably come across two options: porcelain veneers and cosmetic bonding. Both cover the front of a tooth with tooth-colored material, and both can change how your smile looks. They differ in how they're made, how many visits they take, how much enamel is involved and how well they hold up over time.
This guide walks through those differences in plain terms, so you can come to your visit at Always About Smiles in Bethlehem, PA already knowing which questions to ask.
What's the difference between porcelain veneers and bonding?
Porcelain veneers are thin, custom-made coverings that a dental lab makes to fit the front of your teeth. Bonding uses a tooth-colored filling material that's bonded straight onto your tooth, sculpted into shape and hardened with a special light.
Both can improve teeth that are chipped, broken, stained, crooked or misshapen, and both can mask small gaps, according to the American Dental Association's MouthHealthy guide to porcelain and composite veneers. The bonding material is composite resin, the same tooth-colored material used for natural-looking fillings on front and back teeth.
Both treatments are part of our cosmetic dentistry in Bethlehem, PA, and Dr. Lambert will walk you through which one suits your teeth.
Which lasts longer, veneers or bonding?
Porcelain veneers generally hold up better. The ADA describes porcelain as strong, long-lasting and natural-looking, while composite bonding is not as stain- or wear-resistant.
Bonding has its own advantage: it's easier to fix if it gets damaged. Bonding can chip, crack, wear down or loosen over time, and when that happens your dentist can re-bond, repair or replace it. Porcelain veneers are a different story: done properly, on a proper bite, they can match or exceed the longevity of the best ceramic crowns.
Is bonding or a veneer better for a chipped front tooth?
For a small chip or crack on one tooth, bonding is often the simpler repair, because the material is added and shaped right on your tooth. Dr. Lambert uses bonding to repair cracked teeth.
When several teeth are stained, worn or uneven, porcelain veneers let us change the shape and shade of your smile with lab-made coverings designed for those teeth.
Two more points help you decide:
- Enamel. A porcelain veneer requires removing a small amount of enamel from the front and sides of the tooth, so the treatment is not reversible. Composite may require less enamel to be removed.
- Your bite. If you clench or grind your teeth, or have a deep overbite, bonding may not be a good choice. Let us know about grinding at your visit, because it changes which option makes sense for you.
What happens at a veneer visit compared with a bonding visit?
Bonding can usually be planned around fewer visits, while porcelain veneers involve a dental lab and a short wait for your custom veneers. Here's how each one goes, based on the steps the ADA lays out.
Cosmetic bonding:
- Your tooth is prepared, then the composite material is bonded and sculpted onto it.
- A special light hardens the composite so it bonds to your tooth.
- The surface is smoothed and polished to look like your natural tooth.
Porcelain veneers:
- A small amount of enamel is removed from the front and sides of the tooth.
- An impression or a 3D scan of the tooth is taken.
- A dental lab custom makes each veneer to fit, and you may wear a temporary veneer until yours is ready.
- The veneer is placed to check the fit and shape, adjusted, and bonded to your tooth.
Veneers have become a bigger part of our work over the last couple of years. Dr. Lambert says veneers made the traditional way "look and feel just like a real tooth."
Why do Bethlehem patients choose Dr. Lambert at Always About Smiles for veneers and bonding?
Patients choose us because Dr. Thomas R. Lambert, DMD, MAGD, plans cosmetic work around how your teeth have to work, along with how they look. He graduated from Temple University School of Dentistry, completed a General Practice Residency at Lehigh Valley Hospital, and is a member of the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry.
You get careful attention to how small changes in tooth shape affect your bite and your speech. And you get the reasoning behind every option. In Dr. Lambert's words: "I don't sell dentistry. I educate the patient. I think there's nothing stronger than an educated patient."
Wondering whether a chip calls for bonding or your smile is ready for veneers? Call our Bethlehem dental office at (610) 868-9928 or request your visit online, and we'll go over both options with you.
Published by Always About Smiles.
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