Can I bleach my teeth after getting Lumineers?

Two years ago, I got Lumineers on my top teeth. At the time, I did not have the money to fix the bottom ones, so I just left them alone. Now I want to bleach my teeth, but am not sure what that will do to my Lumineers. Thanks for your help.

Taryn in South Fork

Dear Taryn,

Are you looking to bleach just your bottom teeth, or both the bottom and the top? If you are hoping to make both your natural bottom teeth and your Lumineers whiter, I am afraid you are in for a disappointment.

Your bottom teeth will certainly respond to the bleaching process. Check out our page on Zoom Whiteningto read more about what is involved with that procedure. That being said, teeth whitening procedures will do nothing to change the color of your Lumineers. They are as white now as they are ever going to get, so I hope they are a color you like. This is true not just of Lumineers, but of all brands of porcelain veneers. Bleaching will not harm them, but it also will not whiten them.

If you were coming into our office to get Lumineers or some other brand of porcelain veneers, we would advise you to chose the shade you want to wind up with, rather than trying to match the shade of your lower teeth. Hopefully your dentist has done the same, and now the bleaching process on your lower teeth will make them closer to the color of your Lumineers.

I hope you wind up with the result you want!

Posted in Lumineers, Porcelain Veneers, Tooth Whitening, Uncategorized | No Comments »

Lumineers and receding gums

I have a few teeth with receding gums. Can lumineers be made to cover up the exposed gums also if I have my teeth covered by lumineers?
- Jeri from Missouri

Jeri,
You have to be very careful about what dentist you will allow to do this, but with a highly artistic dentist, yes, you can use porcelain veneers to cover your teeth and make them look more natural when you have receding gums. When done right, your smile can be made to look more youthful and it won’t appear like you have receding gums. But it’s a situation where the cosmetic dentist needs a lot of experience with smile makeovers and a strong sense of artistry to be able to create a natural-looking result, because the exposed roots have to be camouflaged, long teeth have to be made to look shorter, and the dark triangles that usually occur with receding gums have to be dealt with.

And you asked about Lumineers, but I answered with the more generic term of porcelain veneers. Lumineers is a particular brand of porcelain veneers, and I believe there are better brands. So don’t get hung up over the brand name. In fact, I would stay away from dentists that promote themselves as “Lumineers” dentists. Most expert cosmetic dentists don’t like to use the Lumineers laboratory because it’s a large, impersonal laboratory. Especially for a case like yours, you will need a more customized approach.

Posted in Gum Disease, Lumineers | No Comments »

How can I get straight teeth in time for graduation?

I am starting my final year of graduate school, and will finish around this time next year. It feels like I’ve been working towards graduation day all my life, and I want everything to be perfect. In some class pictures we took recently (we’re a small, tight-knit group), I noticed how tight and uncomfortable my smile looked next to everyone elses’. It’s because of my awful teeth! They are crowded and crooked, and have embarrassed me all my life.

I want a new smile to go with the new phase in my life. I did some searches on the Internet about braces, but it looks like that will take way too long (up to 3 years!). Is there a faster way? I want to be able to smile my widest on graduation day.

Thanks for your help,

Siobhan from Boston

Dear Siobhan,

Congratulations on your upcoming celebration. You’ve worked hard, and deserve to feel as confident on the outside as you do on the inside.

I would caution you, however, about relying too heavily on the Internet to make decisions about your dental care. You really need to seek the opinion of a skilled cosmetic dentist who can look carefully at your situation and make a recommendation.

Generally speaking, if you want to have straight teeth fast, the quickest route is porcelain veneers. Porcelain veneers do not actually straighten the roots of your teeth, but they make the portions of your teeth that can be seen (the crowns) look as if they are perfectly aligned. This could also take care of any issues you have with discoloration or misshaped teeth. If you chose this route, be very, very certain that you chose the right cosmetic dentist. Check their education and credentials! Review their website to see the before and after pictures in their smile gallery.

Another route that is faster than conventional braces is Invisalign invisible braces. Most people who chose Invisalign are generally done with treatment in 6-9 months, and it almost never takes more than a year. Even if your treatment is not completely done at the time of your graduation festivities, you can always remove the aligner for pictures and the ceremony itself.

The best option for you is to go to an expert cosmetic dentist who does Invisalign braces. That way, you can get their informed, honest opinion on which option would work best for your unique situation.

Good luck!

Posted in Invisalign, Porcelain Veneers | No Comments »