porcelain veneers Archives - Susan M. Dennis, D.D.S

What Is the Best Way to Get Really White Teeth?

Posted on March 6, 2025 by writeradmin.

I’ve been using Crest Whitestrips for several months. While I can tell there has been just a bit of whitening, it’s not getting white very quickly. Is there a more effective way of getting really white teeth?

Stacey

Dear Stacey,

I’m glad you wrote. There are a few ways to get your teeth really white. Which one you use will depend on your goals. If you’re just wanting to get white teeth, then take home professional strength teeth whitening is very effective and less expensive than other options. The reason that the Whitestrips take so long is because their strength is well below what you would get through your dentist. If you are looking to whiten quickly, you can have Zoom Whitening done. It will give you a dramatic amount of whitening in one appointment. They won’t be the whitest they can get, but they will be significantly whiter. Then, if you want to go further, you can use take home trays and gel that your dentist can provide for you.

If, however, you are looking to do more than whiten your teeth, but get a complete smile makeover, then I would recommend you look into porcelain veneers. This is what celebrities turn to in order to get that Hollywood smile. They can change not just the color of your teeth, but the shape, size, and character as well. The one downside is that they are much more expensive than teeth whitening.

While teeth whitening is a very basic cosmetic procedure and just about any dentist can do it, you will need to find an expert cosmetic dentist to do porcelain veneers. Bear in mind that cosmetic dentistry is not a recognized specialty. That means any dentist is permitted to do the procedures AND it is up to them how much post-doctoral training they get. You will want to check out their smile gallery to make sure they get beautiful results.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Snap-On Smile Adjustments

Posted on February 11, 2025 by writeradmin.

I am thinking of getting Snap-on Smile but read that they don’t look very natural. However, I am wondering if they look fake because they are so white. What if I made them more like a natural white? I also saw a video from the Snap-on Smile company showing a special six tool kit that dentists can use to make adjustments on the appliance, which should also help.

Ellie

Dear Ellie,

I am very glad you wrote. I want you to tamper your expectations for Snap-on Smile. These are not going to look completely natural at a conversational distance no matter what you do. They look fine from a distance. The things that do cause appearance problems with these are first, that they are made of acetyl resin. This means they are going to look a bit flat and not have the shine and variance that a natural smile would have. A second issue is that they snap over your teeth. This is going to make most smiles look a little bulky. This is even more so if your teeth stick out a bit. A third problem is the lab that makes Snap-on Smile, which is not known for its artistic results.

If you are wanting a smile makeover, porcelain veneers are your best option. These are what celebrities use to get their smiles done. In the hands of a skilled cosmetic dentist, you can have a stunning smile. It’s the smile you envision. It can a perfect Hollywood smile or one with unique traits and quirks. Veneers can change the shape, size, character, and color of your teeth.

As long as your expectations aren’t too high, they can make some improvements to the appearance of a smile. Bear in mind that they will only last between 2-5 years and then you’ll have to replace them. If a beautiful smile is what you’re after, I would use that time to save up for something like porcelain veneers.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Did Whitening Toothpaste Damage My Porcelain Veneers?

Posted on January 15, 2025 by writeradmin.

I need some advice. I have porcelain veneers and wanted to keep them shiny. I used a whitening toothpaste in order to take very good care of them. Then, I read something about the fact these toothpastes damage porcelain veneers and they’ll start picking up stains. I’ve been using the toothpaste for about six days and now I’m worried I’ve really messed up. If they start picking up stains, will teeth whitening bring them back? Should my dentist have warned me about what type of toothpaste to use?

Elena

Dear Elena,

I’m going to answer your last question first. Yes, your dentist should have given you instructions on how to care for your porcelain veneers. I’m glad you stopped using the whitening toothpaste. I don’t think in the small amount of time you used it that you will have much trouble with damage. If you’d been using it longer I would be more concerned.

You should be aware the teeth whitening will not change porcelain veneers. It only works on natural tooth structure. Because of that, I would like to recommend you read the information on this post on how to care for your veneers.

There is a whitening tooth paste that is safe for porcelain veneers. You could use Supersmile Toothpaste. This is specifically made for cosmetic dentist work and has a safe way of removing the stains on your veneers as well as your natural teeth without any risk to them.

Just in case you don’t get to check out that other post I linked for you, I want you to make absolutely sure that your dentist’s office does not use something like a power prophy jet or acidulated fluoride on your veneers. Those will damage the surface of your veneers and permanently damage them. I only say this because your dentist did not go over care of your smile makeover and I worry that his or her office will not know the right way to care for them and could inadvertently do damage.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Sensitivity to Novocain

Posted on December 3, 2024 by writeradmin.

I want to get a smile makeover with porcelain veneers. The one thing that has me hesitant is that I am highly sensitive to Novocain. A friend of mine said that when she had hers done that her hands began trembling as soon as they put the topical agent on her teeth, and her heart raced the whole time. I’m worried about this.

Stacey

Dear Stacey,

Novocain won’t cause shaking but it can contain epinephrine which might. However, the amount of epinephrine is so small that I find it doubtful.

A more likely scenario is that she was nervous. Your body produces more epinephrine in your system when you are fearful than what would be found in the medication.

Dental fear can also interfere with the effectiveness of Novocain. This is because it will increase your metabolism and, in some cases, burn off the numbing medication. In cases of dental work, I would recommend a sedation dentist in order to relieve the patient of both pain and anxiety.

However, in the case of a smile makeover, especially porcelain veneers, I would not use anything stronger than nitrous oxide. This is because you will need to look at your porcelain veneers with a temporary try-in paste before approving them and agreeing to have them bonded on permanently.

When you use nitrous oxide, the dentist can change the gas from nitrous to oxygen. Within a few moments, you will be as lucid as you were when you came in. Other, stronger types of sedation will make you too sleepy to make any real evaluation of your veneers. You could end up with a cosmetic dentistry horror story. There are plenty of them.

This brings me to my final point. Make sure whoever does your smile makeover has post-doctoral training in cosmetic dentistry. Legally, any dentist can call themselves a cosmetic dentist because it is not a recognized specialty. However, only a small number of them have invested in the training.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Can My Teeth Whiten to Match My Eyeballs?

Posted on November 4, 2024 by writeradmin.

I have an odd question. I like everything I wear to match. I even make sure my shoes, purses, and jewelry match. What I’m wondering is if I can even get my features to match. I’m getting a series of colored contacts and would like to know if I can get my teeth to match the whites of my eyeballs by whitening them. Will they get that white?

Alison

Dear Alison,

Tooth bleaching trays

The answer to that question really depends on how white your eyeballs actually are. While teeth whitening can get your teeth very white, there will be limits. Plus, it is hard to get an exact match to something. This is because the gel will keep whitening for up to two weeks even after you stop using it. That makes it difficult to predict when to stop the whitening procedure.

The good news is that there is a way to get an exact match to your eye balls if you want. In that case, I would get porcelain veneers. These can be made to order and can change anything about your smile that you would like. This includes changing the shape, size, and color.

Be aware there are some precautions to take. Teeth whitening is the most simple procedure available, which means that pretty much any dentist can do it. Porcelain veneers, however, are different. They are an advanced cosmetic procedure which requires post-doctoral training to do well. Additionally, you will want someone with artistic talent. They’re creating a smile for you.

While cosmetic dentistry is not a recognized specialty and any dentist can technically call themselves a cosmetic dentist, smile makeovers are not adequately taught in dental school. A dentist really does need to get additional training. There are way too many cosmetic dentistry horror stories from patients who had it done by an unqualified dentist. Make sure you check out their smile gallery in order to get an idea of the type of result they achieve. If they don’t have a smile gallery, that is a sign you need to look elsewhere.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Sedation and a Smile Makeover Disaster

Posted on August 16, 2024 by writeradmin.

I am at my wits end. About three years ago I went in to get porcelain veneers. Since then it has been nothing but a disaster. It seems like every few days they keep falling off. When I went in the dentist assured me that they wouldn’t take much tooth structure off. but when they fall off what is left of my teeth looks like tiny little nubs. The dentist always puts them back on but I live in a constant state of fear that another one will fall off. Plus, every time she has to put them back on she gives me an Ativan which knocks me out for the whole day. I never get to see what anything looks like until I wake up. Is it normal for the porcelain veneers to be popping off so much?

Annette

Dear Annette,

I am sorry that this happened to you. You, indeed, have what I would consider a cosmetic dentistry horror story. It sounds to me that what your dentist provided for you was not porcelain veneers, but porcelain crowns. I’ve posted an image above that compares the tooth preparation of a dental crown with a porcelain veneer. As you can see, the veneers only remove a few millimeters of tooth surface from the front of the tooth. However, for porcelain crowns, a great deal of structure is removed around the entire tooth.

Often, dentists who do not have a great deal of cosmetic dentistry experience, will point their patients toward crowns instead of veneers in order to save themselves the embarrassment of admitting that they do not know how to do the procedure. While not in the best interest of the patient, that is a bit better than what your dentist has done. Your dentist gave you crowns and told you they were veneers.

What confounds me is how your dentist is not able to even keep those in. Dental crowns are one of the first big procedures dentists are taught in dental school and no one should have graduated without being able to successfully place one. It sounds possible that he over prepared the contour of the area and that is causing them to fall off.

A third thing that bothers me here is the dental sedation. It is not typically used for cosmetic work because we want the patient to be able to look at and approve the work before it is permanently bonded on. Even if you were to have dental anxiety and need some sedation, I would lean toward a nitrous oxide, which gets you back to normal quickly. Then, even if you needed something stronger, like oral conscious sedation, Ativan is a bad choice. It has a serum half-life of 24 hours. I think you’d find most sedation dentists use something that has a half-life of three hours, so you are not useless for a full day afterward.

I think, because you were misled about what you were getting for your smile makeover AND the work is so poorly done it won’t even stay in your mouth, that your dentist should pay to have this fixed by a dentist of your choosing. Just make certain you choose an expert cosmetic dentist this time.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Brown Spots On Teeth

Posted on August 6, 2024 by writeradmin.

I have had some brown discoloration on my teeth ever since my adult teeth came in. They’ve been an embarrassment my entire life. I’ve recently graduated from college and need to improve my smile if I am going to get a good job. My dentist and I have experimented with a ton of those over-the-counter boxes and kits for whitening. The problem we have run into is they don’t whiten the brown spots, just the already white part. She’s now considering two options. First, I could go to another dentist who does teeth whitening and see if professional strength teeth whitening will have more effect on my spots. Second, she could try grinding down the brown parts to get rid of them. She isn’t sure how much she’d have to ground down, so this has me a bit worried. What is the better option for me? I feel stuck with choosing.

Alana

Dear Alana,

Tooth bleaching trays

Though there is a solution for your teeth, I am going to tell you upfront that neither of the options your dentist has suggested will work. I can tell your dentist cares about you and is honest because one of the first options she suggested is that you can get a treatment that she didn’t even offer. This tells me she would rather someone else make the money if it gets you the help you need. That being said, she is in over her head.

Like you experienced with the over-the-counter teeth whitening, professional teeth whitening will not take care of the brown spots. While it will whiten your teeth more efficiently and safely than the stuff you purchase at a store, it whitens your teeth evenly. This means that the brown spots will end up looking more noticeable.

As for her second suggestion, please do not allow her to grind down your teeth. Your issue requires an understanding of advanced cosmetic dental issues. She doesn’t understand teeth whitening, which is the most basic of all the procedures.

The Solution for Browns Spots

There are two good options for you. The first is to have dental bonding done on the tooth. This is where a cosmetic dentist covers the brown spots with a white composite, similar to a dental filling. These will need to be replaced every few years and are not as stain resistant as the second option.

Another procedure is porcelain veneers. With this procedure, cosmetic dentists will use tiny wafers of porcelain that will cover the entire front of your teeth. When well taken care of, they can last a lifetime. Plus, porcelain is very stain resistant; even more stain resistant than your natural teeth.

The caveat is that both of these procedures are very advanced cosmetic procedures, which would require a dentist who has invested in post-doctoral training and knows how to do them well.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Will Teeth Whitening Fix My Dental Bonding?

Posted on May 10, 2024 by writeradmin.

I had dental bonding done about ten years ago. They’re now looking pretty rough. I know that regular teeth whitening is not strong enough. I wondered however if the KöR Whitening was strong enough. I was told that it is much stronger than the other take home whitenings.

Ben

Dear Ben,

The good news is that whoever did your dental bonding made sure it lasted. That is fantastic. Most dental bonding doesn’t make it nearly that long. The unfortunate news is the KöR Whitening will not get it any whiter.

The reason for that has nothing to do with the strength of the whitening procedure. Instead, it has to do with the way teeth whitening works. It will only whiten natural tooth structure. That means whether you are using https://www.mydrdennis.com/kor-whitening/ or another at-home whitening, it will have no effect on your dental bonding.

You have two options for this. First, you can get the dental bonding replaced. If you do it with the same dentist, then I would expect it to last as long as these did, given the same set of circumstances, including how you care for them. If you end up with a different dentist, you should know these generally last only a few years.

If you are looking for something more permanent, than I would look into porcelain veneers. These are generally used for a complete smile makeover. They can last for decades if well cared for.

You didn’t say what the dental bonding was for. If it is just a chipped tooth or some other small surface, than you are better off just having the bonding redone even if it has to be redone periodically because it is less expensive. If it is a larger surface, then you will likely want to invest in the veneers.

I hope this helps you.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Should I Get Invisalign or Porcelain Veneers?

Posted on April 10, 2024 by writeradmin.

I have wanted to improve my smile for years. I have one tooth that is a little crooked and my teeth are discolored. I was hoping to get porcelain veneers but my dentist said because of the crooked tooth, I would need to get braces first and then the porcelain veneers. I’m not too keen on the extra time and money that would require. If that is the case, is there a way to get my teeth white with Invisalign as well? I know that porcelain veneers can change the color but I’m guessing Invisalign just straightens them.

Tammy

Dear Tammy,

I am a bit concerned that your dentist is suggesting you would need braces before doing your porcelain veneers. Bear in mind as you read this that I have not examined you. However, if all you have is a slightly crooked tooth, then porcelain veneers can be placed and make the tooth look straight. It can also change the color, as you mentioned, but also the shape and size of the tooth. This is why they are used for complete smile makeovers.

If all that is wrong with your teeth is the crooked tooth and discoloration, then you could save yourself a lot of money by using Invisalign paired with teeth whitening. The Invisalign aligners can double as teeth whitening trays. All your dentist would need to provide you with is the professional strength teeth whitening gel. In most cases, Invisalign works in a fraction of the time it takes traditional braces to straighten your teeth. Unless there were other things about your teeth that you want to change, or you are in a super hurry, this is the route I would go.

On the other hand, if there are other things about your teeth that you want to change, then porcelain veneers will be the correct choice. That being said, I would not recommend you pressure your current dentist into doing them. The fact that he was pushing your toward braces tells me he is not very comfortable with his skill level using porcelain veneers. This means you will not get the beautiful result you are likely hoping for. You will need to find a different dentist with significant post-doctoral training creating porcelain veneers. Also, make sure he or she is willing to use a temporary try in paste and allow you to get a good look at the veneers in several different types of lighting. Only if you are absolutely in love with them, should the dentist do the permanent bonding. If you’re not thrilled, they should go back to the lab in order to make the changes needed.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Bonding, Whitening, and Tetracycline Stains

Posted on April 4, 2024 by writeradmin.

I had tetracycline stains because of some medication when I was a child. I had dental bonding done quite a few years ago. Now the bonding is chipped and discolored. I can’t get porcelain veneers at this time because of finances. I was hoping that there have been advances in teeth whitening that will take care of my tetracycline stains and then I can just take off the dental bonding and whiten the teeth. Can you advise me?

Pearl

Dear Pearl,

Tooth bleaching trays

A lot of what you can do from here depends on how your dental bonding was placed. If your dentist placed the dental bonding on top of intact tooth enamel, than the aging bonding can be removed. However, if your dentist removed the enamel before placing the bonding, then your options are limited.

If your bonding is removable, then teeth whitening is a solution. My suggestion would be to have your dentist set you up with teeth bleaching trays and whiten your teeth with the strongest gel that you are able to tolerate. If your dentist has KöR Whitening available, that has some additional strength benefits. If you are persistent, the whitening can make a huge difference. I would bleach your teeth every night for at least a couple of months. You will find your teeth look much better.

Don’t do something like Zoom or laser treatments, even though they are stronger. It is also much more expensive and you will need quite a few treatments. Stick with the good old bleach take home trays. You’ll get the same results, though it will take a little longer, at a fraction of the cost. One type of take home whitening that is stronger than others is KöR Whitening. You could see if your dentist offers that.

Of course, they won’t have the same exact beauty you could get with porcelain veneers if you went to an expert cosmetic dentist, but you will be much happier with your smile.

If the enamel was removed, however, your only real option is to get porcelain veneers. I would not just go to any cosmetic dentist, and definitely not the cheapest. Porcelain veneers are an advanced cosmetic procedure and tetracycline stains are the most challenging type of those cases. Save up and go to the best you can find.

Hopefully, you can at least start with the teeth whitening option and then eventually get porcelain veneers.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.