If you have lost at least one tooth, you are probably looking for options to replace it. You may be considering porcelain veneers as an option. These think shells are bonded to your front teeth to improve how they look. They can create your desired smile by covering up issues like chipped, discolored, cracked, and crooked teeth. As veneers must bond to a tooth, you cannot get them with missing teeth. However, your dentist in Lincoln Park, Chicago can recommend other options. 

Beautifying Your Teeth with Dental Veneers

Dental veneers were first designed to mask the dental issues of celebrities. But they became popular among people from all walks of life as they can create a Hollywood smile. The original dental veneers were removable, but modern veneers are permanent fixtures that a dentist will cement onto your front teeth. 

If your dentist says you can get veneers, they will get a small amount of your tooth enamel to accommodate the veneers. Then, they will take an impression of the front teeth and send it to a laboratory where custom veneers are made. Lastly, the dental veneers are bonded permanently onto your front teeth with special dental cement. 

Reasons Veneers are Not a Teeth Replacement Option

Modern veneers are made individually like the way prosthetic nails are made. Often, they are applied to the visible front teeth. Because of this, every dental veneer is attached to one tooth to make a natural-looking smile. 

Veneer application requires the existence of a natural tooth structure underneath to which the shells bond. This structure should be big and healthy enough to hold your dental veneer. If there is only a small tooth to hold the veneer, the dentist may suggest that you get a porcelain crown to protect your tooth while enhancing your look. 

Why You Should Get Dental Implants to Replace Missing Teeth

Although veneers can cover misaligned, stained, or short teeth, dental implants are the best teeth replacement solution. A dental implant is composed of a titanium post, a porcelain crown, and an abutment. It is made to match the adjacent teeth’s shape and color. 

Aside from filling the obvious gaps and resolving aesthetic issues, dental restorations can prevent oral health problems and bone loss by replacing the root of the tooth and keeping the rest of the teeth in place. Also, artificial replacement teeth let you eat normally, which is something that may not be possible with dentures.