Serving Orange County, Irvine, Mission Viejo, Newport Beach Laguna Niguel, and Santa Margarita, California, and surrounding areas

If you have minor imperfections in your teeth that make you self-conscious about your smile, you might be wondering whether porcelain veneers or crowns might be a better way to improve your looks.

The choice between porcelain veneers and crowns depends on the condition of your teeth. If you wish to correct minor imperfections in your smile, porcelain veneers might be the better choice. For more serious issues, where teeth have large fillings, cracks and decay, ¾ crowns or full porcelain crowns might may you more strength and protect your teeth more.

What are Veneers?

Porcelain veneers are very thin shells made of porcelain that are attached to the front of your teeth with a special bonding agent. Not much thicker than a fingernail, porcelain veneers require only a very slight reshaping of your tooth to make room for them. Dr. Huefner removes a thin layer of enamel to prepare your teeth for the porcelain veneers, then places temporary veneers to protect your teeth while the permanent veneers are being fabricated by Dr. Huefner’s skilled ceramist. The permanent veneers are custom made based on molds of your teeth made by Dr. Huefner and careful color matching is achieved according to specifics determined jointly by you and Dr. Huefner.

Once the permanent porcelain veneers are ready, Dr. Huefner gently removes the temporary veneers and replaces them with the custom made porcelain veneers. Once bonded to your teeth, your porcelain veneers provide a natural look to give you a confident smile.

What are Crowns?

Crowns, which can be made of either porcelain or metal, or a combination of the two, are constructed in the shape of the full tooth. Crowns are also custom-made, and porcelain crowns are usually color matched to your adjacent teeth, or the color your request. Crowns are used to correct more serious damage to the teeth than porcelain veneers can adequately treat. If you have already had a root canal on a tooth, crowns are usually the preferred treatment as they will give the tooth more strength and protection.

While crowns placed on the front teeth are often made of porcelain, crowns for the back teeth are often gold or porcelain on gold. If your teeth are cracked or damaged enough that Dr. Huefner feels they won’t support a veneer, he might recommend a crown instead.

If you are in the Irvine, Newport Beach, or Orange County, California or surrounding area, and have damaged, cracked, or heavily discolored teeth, please contact Dr. Norman Huefner at Sensational Smiles. With an initial consultation, we can recommend veneers or crowns to give you a bright, new smile and the self-confidence that comes along with it.

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