My daughter is very embarrassed by her teeth. One of her teeth is a little shorter than the others. All of them are discolored. On her two front teeth, one of them overlaps the other a little. It makes her feel ugly and some of the other students make fun of her. She has all her adult teeth. Would it be okay at her age to have porcelain veneers done?
Miranda
Dear Miranda,
It is great that you’re looking for solutions for your daughter. In those years, peers can be very cruel. Fixing the appearance of her smile will give her renewed confidence. While she could get porcelain veneers if her teeth are developed, her jaw isn’t. This means her bite is still changing and would require you to replace the veneers more often than would otherwise be necessary until she reaches full growth.
I have another suggestion which can also help her smile, but will cost you a lot less while you wait for her to finish growing. First, have her do professional teeth whitening. This will get the teeth which aren’t going to be worked on as white as the rest of her smile and create uniformity.
Next, the teeth needing the most work can have dental bonding done. This uses a composite resin which is hand sculpted onto her teeth repairing any appearance issues which bother her. While this will also need to be replaced periodically, it costs significantly less.
Once her jaw has reached maturity, that would be the time to get porcelain veneers. It will make it a lifetime investment for her and is a much more permanent solution than the dental bonding.
Choose Her Cosmetic Dentist Carefully
There isn’t a recognized specialty in cosmetic dentistry. Because of that, the patient is left doing the research on who is actually qualified to do cosmetic work well and who isn’t. Creating smile makeovers isn’t taught in dental school. To learn this art, dentists have to take the initiative to do post-doctoral training and develop the technical skill as well as the artistry.
Before you invest in a smile makeover with any dentist, I highly suggest you check out their smile gallery. Ask to see before and after photos of cases they’ve done which are similar to the type of work your daughter will need. Make sure it is work they’ve done themselves and not stock photos.
If you are thrilled with the quality, you can go forward. Otherwise, look for someone else.
This blog is brought to you by San Antonio Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Imam.