If you have damaged or discolored teeth, you’ve likely looked into dental treatments to fix your smile. Dental veneers and tooth bonding treatments are common treatments that address multiple cosmetic problems. But which treatment should you choose? Here, we will compare bonding and veneers, both part of the cosmetic dentistry services we offer patients in Milton, FL, to address tooth damage, stains, gaps, and more.
Dental Veneers vs. Tooth Bonding
Veneers are shell-like treatments that cover one or more teeth in the smile line. Dental bonding treatment uses malleable, tooth-colored materials to cover or add structure to teeth. You can maintain bonding and veneers with good oral hygiene by brushing and flossing between these treatments as you would your natural teeth.
However, there are multiple ways that dental veneers and tooth bonding differ from each other:
Cosmetic and Restorative Needs
Dental veneers and bonding treatments can address tooth gaps, slightly crooked teeth, tooth damage, and deep tooth stains. However, depending on the areas and extent of your dental problems, we will recommend one option over the other.
Veneers only cover the front of teeth and are best for minor cosmetic problems like discolored teeth and slightly crooked teeth. On the other hand, dental bonding treatment adds structure to chipped and fractured teeth while changing the color of the enamel. Dental veneers can cover damaged teeth but not broken teeth.
Treatment Time
Dental bonding treatment will take less time than veneer treatment as we will not need to create separate cosmetic treatments for patients. Porcelain veneers will require a longer treatment time than dental bonding because we need to ensure that veneers are custom-made.
To create veneers, we take dental impressions that we send to a local lab. Technicians create the veneers to our exact specifications. Then, we place the veneers on the teeth. During bonding treatment, we will prepare the teeth for bonding, place the bonding material on the tooth, and harden the material with a curing light in one visit.
Cost
The cost of veneers and bonding treatment will depend on how many teeth require treatment. However, on average, veneers may cost more than tooth bonding treatment. This is due to the materials and lab costs.
Lasting Treatment
Dental veneers are considered permanent because we prepare the teeth for veneers. Patients must be committed to covering their teeth with veneers or another treatment because we remove a portion of the tooth. Veneers typically last ten or more years. Alternatively, bonding treatment can last five to ten years.
Do you want to learn more about the restorative and cosmetic dentistry treatment we offer in our Milton office? Call Lassiter Smiles for a consultation today at 850.427.5891. You may also request a dental appointment with Dr. Jim Lassiter online.