Dental Bonding vs. Porcelain Veneers: Which Is Right for Me?
Patients who visit our Staten Island cosmetic dentistry practice receive customized dental care that addresses their needs. If a patient's smile is flawed in some way that's predominantly cosmetic in nature, we have plenty of treatments that can be used to address the imperfection. Once treatment is completed, patients can smile with renewed confidence.
Two common treatments for cosmetic flaws include dental bonding and porcelain veneers. Let's take a moment to compare them.
About Dental Bonding
Also known as composite bonding and tooth bonding, dental bonding involves painting tooth-colored dental resin onto the surface of a tooth. The resin is then carefully polished in order to blend into the natural tooth structure. The result is a tooth that looks perfect. The resin is indistinguishable from the structure of your tooth.
Ideal Uses for Dental Bonding
Dental bonding may be recommended to deal with the following aesthetic flaws:
- Major tooth stains
- Tooth discoloration
- Minor chips
- Minor cracks
- Small spaces between teeth
About Porcelain Veneers
Porcelain veneers are thing shells of dental ceramic that are used to conceal the front portion of a tooth. The porcelain veneers are semi-transluscent, meaning that when they are in place, light passes through them slightly just like your natural teeth. Up close, in natural light or artificial light, it will be difficult to tell that a porcelain veneer is in place.
Ideal Uses for Porcelain Veneers
Porcelain veneers may be recommended to deal with the following aesthetic flaws:
- Major tooth stains
- Tooth discoloration
- Chips, cracks, and other fractures
- Small spaces between teeth
- Smile asymmetry
- Uneven or misshapen teeth
- Minor tooth misalignment/crookedness
The Nature of Your Problem Determines the Ideal Treatment
As you might have noticed, dental bonding and porcelain veneers can both address some of the same dental problems. When a dentist decides which cosmetic dentistry option is most ideal for the patient, the dentist typically considers the extent of the patient's problem.
Very minor flaws with smile aesthetics are best addressed with dental bonding since it is non-invasive and quite effective. More serious cosmetic imperfections are better addressed through porcelain veneers. Ultimately an examination and consultation is required to figure out which would be more beneficial to the patient given their dental care needs.
Smile Makeover: Combining Bonding and Veneers
Sometimes a dental problem is such that a single treatment can't get the job done. That's where a smile makeover may be ideal.
Smile makeovers involve a combination of different cosmetic dentistry procedures to address the various imperfections affecting a smile. This could mean dental bonding as well as porcelain veneers to address issues that affect multiple teeth. Other cosmetic treatments such as teeth whitening and gum contouring may also be on the table to enhance the beauty of your smile.
Learn More About Your Cosmetic Dentistry Options
For more information about your many dental treatment options, be sure to contact our cosmetic and restorative dentistry center today. We at Staten Island Aesthetic & Implant Dentist look forward to your visit and helping you smile with renewed confidence.