I received a huge bonus and decided to invest it on my smile. I had porcelain veneers done about three months ago. My teeth were quite small the excellent cosmetic dentist I went to made them longer. My smile is gorgeous. I can’t tell you how often I smile these days. This morning I noticed a horizontal crack about a 1/3 of the way down the tooth. Will it fall off? I spent all my bonus to get these veneers. I don’t think I can afford to get it replaced. I honestly don’t think I did anything to it. I’ve taken great care of the teeth. What do you recommend I do?
Portia
Dear Portia,
I truly don’t think your dentist will blame you for what happened to your porcelain veneer. If a patient abused their porcelain veneers, it would show up as chips, not a horizontal crack. Plus, as you’ve said, patients generally love their new smile makeover so much they take great care of their porcelain veneers.
While often a cracked porcelain veneer is in no danger of falling off due to the bonding procedure, based on the fact that they needed to make your teeth longer, I’d be a little concerned it doesn’t have much to hold on to, especially given where you said the crack was located. I think this veneer will need to be replaced.
I know you’re worried about money, however, given the short amount of time you’ve had the veneer, I think it is very likely they will not charge you to replace it, especially if you explain the financial situation and what allowed you to get your smile makeover to begin with, he’ll be compassionate about the replacement.
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