Hi, one of my front teeth died years ago as a result of an
accident. When it became noticable, I had a dentist put a veneer over the tooth, which was
satisfactory until recently. About a year or so ago, the tooth began to look distinctly
darker than my surrounding teeth. I like my tooth; it is in good condition, and I hate to
remove it. I went to a new dentist to see about replacing the veneer, and she said I ought
to have a crown put on it instead, as the veneer wouldn't affect the fact that from the
back the tooth is very dark, and so would continue to look dark. I don't understand why
she can't put a veneer all around the tooth, rather than drilling away a perfectly good
tooth and putting on a crown. Also, I am worried that the area between the crown and the
root will show and it will be obvious that I have a crown. This is my front tooth and
every time I open my mouth it is visible. Isn't it possible to simply replace the veneer
rather than doing a crown over my tooth? Thanks for your help
Though I have not seen your tooth, I am guessing that a root canal has been completed. You
are correct that the tooth has now darkened with time due to the loss of circulation to
it. You might be happy to know that many times we can bleach a root canal treated tooth
from the inside out! In other words, it may be possible to lighten your tooth without even
removing your veneer. Depending on the type of root canal performed and the existence of a
post inside your tooth, a bleaching may or may not be feasible OR may require the root
canal treatment to be redone. As for your other question, because a veneer is so thin, it
is unlikely that a new veneer would ever be able to fully mask the darkness underneath. It
is very routine for us to crown teeth which have died to protect and strengthen them. Once
a tooth dies, it becomes more brittle with time and a crown helps prevent further
breakdown. You may be able to have a ceramic crown which contains no metal and is very
natural in appearance. This way, no metal will show between the crown and root of your
tooth! I wish you luck with restoring your smile. |
