1720 Milwaukee Ave, Glenview, IL - 60025
Upgrade Your Smile With Custom Veneers
Veneers, such as Lumineers ® are made of porcelain or other materials and designed to fit over your existing teeth to give them a desirable shape, color, and appearance that best highlights your smile.
What Are the Steps Involved
Step 1
Your dentist will take the shade of your existing teeth to ensure the shade of your veneers matches your natural smile as closely as possible. Next, your dentist will trim your teeth, if needed, to allow room for the veneers to fit over them while keeping your teeth as close as possible to their original thickness. Typically, only a very small amount of tooth enamel needs to be removed.
Step 2
Next, your dentist will take an impression of your teeth. Veneers are fabricated in a lab to fit exactly over your existing teeth.
Step 3
Once your custom-made veneer is ready, it’s time for your next office visit. Your dentist will then prepare your teeth using an etching process and will bond each veneer to your teeth, one by one. Your dentist will then make adjustments as necessary to ensure your bite is even.
Step 4
About one week after they are placed, you will return to the office for a quick follow-up visit so your dentist can check on how your mouth is reacting to the treatment. Even if you feel fine, this step is very important in ensuring the success and long-term results of your veneers.
Types of Dental Issues That Glenview & Northbrook - Veneers Can Correct
- Teeth that are discolored and cannot be corrected by in-office whitening treatments. These types of discoloration may be due to root canal treatment; stains from tetracycline or other drugs, or tooth discoloration due to large fillings.
- Teeth that are worn down and have lost their former shape
- Teeth that are chipped or broken
- Teeth that are uneven, out of alignment, or irregularly shaped (for example, teeth with craters or bulges in them)
- Teeth with gaps between them
Options: Porcelain, including Lumineers® and Resin Composite
There are two basic types of options available: Porcelain, which includes the Lumineers system, and Resin Composite.
Resistance to Stains
- Porcelain Veneers & Lumineers: Greater resistance
- Resin Composite: Less resistant
Thinness (impact on tooth surface during preparation)
- Porcelain Veneers & Lumineers: Thicker than resin composite, greater tooth surface impacted during preparation
- Resin Composite: Thinner than porcelain, also known as "minimal prep" veneers
Natural look compared to other teeth
- Porcelain Veneers & Lumineers: Better light reflection than resin, more natural-looking
- Resin Composite: Matches natural tooth color, but does not reflect light as well as porcelain
Cost
- Porcelain Veneers & Lumineers: Somewhat more than resin composite
- Resin Composite: Somewhat less than porcelain
Post-procedure care
Some patients experience some sensitivity to heat or cold shortly after the veneers are placed. Your dentist will let you know what you can expect and will check in with you at your one-week follow-up visit. If you do experience sensitivity, be sure to let your dentist know.
Veneers should be treated like regular teeth – including practicing a great at-home oral hygiene routine and maintaining regular checkups and cleaning visits. If you have a habit of clenching or grinding your teeth, your dentist may recommend a nightguard to help protect your teeth and veneers.
Alternative Treatment Options
Not all patients are good candidates for veneers. Bite, alignment, or other issues may increase the risk of damaging or breaking the veneer. In these cases, your dentist may recommend a full crown. In other cases, braces or other orthodontic treatment may be recommended to resolve issues with spacing or tooth alignment.