If you’re looking to transform your smile in Long Beach, you may be wondering if dental crowns are right for you, or if porcelain veneers are a better option. What’s the difference between these treatments, anyway? What’s right for you? Find out in this blog from Dodds Dental. We’ll explore the differences between each treatment, and help you determine which option is the best for your situation.
Crowns Are A Restorative Treatment Meant To Improve Your Oral Health
First, let’s start by discussing the basics of dental crowns. A crown is a tooth-shaped piece of porcelain that’s designed to cover up your tooth all the way down to the gum line. Essentially, the crown completely replaces your natural tooth.
This restores your natural tooth, and also protects the remaining enamel from further damage and decay. This makes crowns an ideal option for restoring damaged teeth. They are often used to repair teeth that have been damaged by oral trauma, deep cavities, tooth infections, or teeth grinding.
That’s one of the main things that distinguishes crowns from veneers. Crowns are a restorative treatment. They do improve the appearance of your smile, but that’s not their primary purpose. Instead, the primary goal of placing a dental crown is to cover up, protect, and restore a damaged tooth, and prevent further oral health issues. They are sometimes used for purely cosmetic purposes, but this is fairly rare.
Another big distinction is that crowns require a lot more trimming of your tooth. Often, up to 50% or 80% of the natural enamel must be removed from your tooth This is because the crown covers up and surrounds the entire tooth. Trimming the enamel provides a stable platform for the crown, and ensures that it can be built to be thick and strong, and resistant to the forces of biting and chewing.
Veneers Are A Cosmetic Treatment Meant To Restore Your Appearance
Now that you understand the basics of crowns, let’s discuss veneers. Similarly to crowns, veneers are tooth-shaped pieces of porcelain that are designed to fit over your teeth, and cover them up.
That’s where the similarities end, though. Unlike crowns, veneers are only meant to cover up the front surface of your tooth. They also are much thinner. That means less enamel must be removed, but it also means that veneers are not quite as strong or as durable as a dental crown.
Because of this, veneers are not an appropriate option for repairing damaged teeth. They can add some strength to the tooth, but they cannot be used to repair a broken, infected, cracked, or damaged tooth.
However, this makes veneers a much better option for cosmetic dentistry. Because they're so thin, they don’t require the removal of much enamel. And because they can completely cover up your front teeth, they are very versatile. Veneers can be used to treat lots of cosmetic issues, such as stained teeth, gaps in your smile, minor chips, uneven teeth, and more.
Transform Your Smile In Long Beach With A Consultation At Dodds Dental
Visiting the dentist is the best way to find out which type of dental treatment is right for your unique situation. And at Dodds Dental, we’re always accepting new patients. Dr. Emily and Dr. Dustin Dodds are both experienced restorative and cosmetic dentists.
Whether you have some minor cosmetic problems with your smile, or you think you may need crowns to restore damaged teeth, we’re here to help. Contact us online or give us a call at (562) 439-0754 to schedule a consultation, and get the help you need in Long Beach.
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