by L. Emery Karst, DDS from Dental Tribune
As patients get older,anterior teeth commonly show wear,chipping and discoloration. These changes are the result of a number of factors because of aging. There is increased awareness of these unattractive teeth and the desire to have a more youthful appearance. Because of the recent media attention to changing ones appearance with veneers, there is a much greater demand to have cosmetic dentistry done.
Over the years in the practice of dentistry, I have developed products and techniques that have improved my practice significantly. I wasn’t aware that other dentists might not be as innovative. It wasn’t until I took on an associate, who had been in practice for 18 years, and he informed me that these were new ideas to him as well as to other dentists he knew.
I’ve done veneers for more than 25 years and developed a technique that can make a single veneer blend so naturally with the other teeth that it is undetectable. Various nuances in technique make preparing and bonding veneers quick and easy.
I have a CEREC machine that works especially well for a single veneer. Six or eight veneers have been done on the CEREC, but it is rather time consuming. Two or three cases of the same number of teeth could have been prepared, impressions taken and sent to a lab in the same time frame. It is more cost effective to use a lab. But you have to have the best lab available to do this if you expect perfect results.
