Several weeks ago, porcelain veneers were placed on two of my teeth. I was originally happy with the how they looked, but when I got home, I noticed what seemed to be a small rough scratch on one of them. I returned to the dentist, who said it would be an easy fix and could just be smoothed out and did it right then and there. Again, I was happy with the result and could not feel the scratch, or see it, so I thought all was great. However, when I got home, I realized the spot on which the work had been performed was dull, no longer having the same sheet or shade as the tooth next to it. Perhaps this is a minor thing that I should not worry about, but I can’t shake that I paid a great deal of money to have the procedure done and think they should look pretty close to perfect. Is this worth mentioning to my dentist and asking him to repair or replace the veneer again?
Thank you,
Rachel
Dear Rachel,
A glaze coat over the top of the veneer is the cause of the shine. It’s possible that the lighting, or even the amount of saliva in your mouth, at the time you looked at the work, could have prevented you from seeing the lack of shine. This glaze coating is baked onto the veneer during the building process at a lab, and, unfortunately, once it’s gone, there is no way to get it again.
Cosmetically, you have reason to request that the veneer be redone or repaired. The sooner you request this, the better, as without the glaze, the spot will become more susceptible to staining and will become more and more noticeable over time. In addition, if you make your request in a timely manner, the work will be fresh in the dentist’s mind, preventing him from being able to argue that you somehow caused it.
It seems you have two options. Achieving a similar shine through polishing is possible. This requires the use of instruments and paste that are used for diamond polishing. A dentist who frequently does cosmetic work would have these on hand, so it’s somewhat troubling that your dentist did not use them originally when he was working to smooth out the scratch. If that is because your dentist is not a cosmetic dentist, you may be better off asking for the veneer to be replaced, or finding a dentist who specializes in cosmetic dentistry to complete the work.
This blog is provided by Enfield porcelain veneer provider, Dr. William Cummiskey.
.
