As your teeth chip, become damaged or need replacement, you may start looking at your options. Some possibilities you can consider for correcting your teeth is to use either veneers or dental implants. There are major differences between these two, and often you won’t be able to have much of a choice, so let’s look at what they have to offer and which one you should use in certain situations.
Tooth Replacement
If your teeth need to be replaced, whether it is one, a couple, or all of them, then dental implants are your only option. You cannot use veneers for this purpose. That’s because dental implants actually take the place of the tooth, and veneers only cover a portion of the tooth. For a veneer to work properly, there has to be at least some of the tooth still in place.
So if a tooth is missing or needs to be taken out and replaced with something else, a veneer simply won’t be an option. A dental implant requires that a hole be drilled into the bone and a metal fastener be placed there This fastener holds the false tooth in place. This can create a tooth replacement that lasts for as long as 15 years or more. With proper care, you may never need to repair or replace a dental implant. Best of all, practically no one will be able to tell that you have a dental implant because they look so much like your natural teeth.
Tooth Repair
If your tooth becomes chipped, suffers damage or looks stained, you may be able to use a veneer to cover it up and restore proper function to the tooth. This works a lot like a crown, as it goes over or in front of the tooth that is already there. It will require that you have a tooth in place though, as it needs that support to be able to do its job properly.
A veneer is made of a thin ceramic material, and it is not as durable as a dental implant. That means it won’t last as long, and many, with proper care, only last about ten years. Thankfully, veneers are a lot easier to replace and won’t require as much expense or time.
You probably would not want to replace an entire tooth just because a small portion of it is damaged. A dental implant just would not make sense in this case, as it would mean getting rid of healthy tooth materials and digging out the tooth by the root. A veneer is a much better option for damaged teeth, unless the damage is extensive.
Your dental professional will recommend the best option for you, but, of course, it is up to you to decide what you want to do. Know that in most cases, your dental insurance won’t cover either the dental implant or the veneer. Some will, but these are not procedures generally covered under standard dental insurance.