I got four porcelain veneers. They’re okay. They’re not quite as “Wow!” as I was expecting and they seem to look in all the pictures of them. I’ve got a few things bugging me and making me embarrassed about smiling. First, they don’t match my teeth. I didn’t want them to look exactly like my teeth otherwise what’s the point of porcelain veneers anyway. But, my regular teeth show on either side of them, so I wish they blended better. Next, one of them is darker than the rest of them. That means I now have three different colored teeth. What do I do? Do you know why this one veneer is darker?
Lindsey K.
Dear Lindsey,
Based on what you’ve described above, I think the biggest hurdle you’re facing is the dentist you’ve chosen to place them. Many people, out of a mistaken sense of loyalty, think they have to go to their family dentist for their cosmetic work too. Not only is that not necessary, it’s usually a disaster unless their family dentist has invested a lot of time training in cosmetic procedures. Your dentist hasn’t. Here’s how I know that.
1. He only placed four porcelain veneers on your teeth. Even the tiniest of smiles is wider than four teeth. Normally, you’d place double that. For wide smiles, you’d place even more.
2. At the very least, he should have whitened your entire smile, before placing only four veneers, so there’d be at least a chance of them blending with your natural, yet still visible, teeth.
3. The darkening of the single veneer. That’s probably a sign that he didn’t bond the veneer on properly, which allows food and other things to get between the veneer and your tooth. This makes the veneer appear darker.
Unfortunately, the only way to fix this is to have the case re-done. In your place, I’d ask for a refund from your dentist. You’re obviously unsatisfied with the quality of the work and a lot of it was done improperly.
Then, when you go to have it re-done, make sure you get a skilled and artistic cosmetic dentist. The easiest way to find one of those is to look for a dentist who’s reached accreditation level with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry (AACD). An AACD accredited dentist can give you a stunning smile.
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