Veneers

Dental veneers (sometimes called porcelain veneers or dental porcelain laminates) are wafer-thin, custom-made shells of tooth-coloured materials designed to cover the front surface of teeth to improve your appearance.

These shells are bonded to the front of the teeth changing their colour, shape, size, or length.A veneer is a layer of material placed over a tooth, either to improve the aesthetics of a tooth or to protect the tooth's surface from damage.

There are two main types of material used to fabricate a veneer: composite and dental porcelain. A composite veneer may be directly placed (built-up in the mouth), or indirectly fabricated by a dental technician in a dental lab, and later bonded to the tooth, typically using a resin cement. In contrast, a porcelain veneer may only be indirectly fabricated. A fabricated veneer, on the other hand, is a thin layer that covers only the surface of the tooth and generally used for aesthetic purposes.

Since veneers are individually sculpted for each patient, it is nearly impossible to tell the difference between a veneer and a natural tooth. Unlike natural teeth, custom-made veneers resist coffee and tea stains, and cigarette smoke because they are made of high-tech materials.

With veneers, as opposed to crowns, your natural teeth remain largely intact with only a minimal amount being altered to fit the veneer. For teeth that resist whitening, veneers can make even the darkest teeth appear bright white.

Dentists may also recommend veneers to quickly fix minor twists, overlaps, and small gaps.