I had eight porcelain veneers put on my front teeth a year ago. Since then it has been a bit of a nightmare. My natural teeth were ground down to little nubs to place the porcelain veneers so now I am stuck needing them. The problem I have is that they keep popping off. My dentist always gets me back in to glue them back on, but I’m a constant nervous wreck worried that another one is going to pop off. The anxiety is even worse when I am in public. This happpens at least once a week. My dentist blames my teeth grinding for them coming off so I got a nightguard, which was more money. That has not helped. Yesterday, they fell off while I was eating a banana! I’m spending more time crying than enjoying the smile. When I got these, she told me they’d last 20 years. I can’t even get them to stay on for a week. I have the additional stress of the fact that we are moving in just over a month. What if another dentist won’t touch me because of this or glue them back on without a charge? I can’t afford this. Also, while I’m writing you. Each time I come in she has me take some Ativan both before and when I arrive at my appointment. She does charge me for this, which is quite a financial strain. My husband says I’m pretty much a zombie the rest of the day. I’m losing gobs of time and I’m not sure if this is normal or not. Can you help me?
Lisa
Dear Lisa,
All I can say is Wow! I am sorry this is what you have experienced. I believe what your dentist has done is malpractice. Here is why.
Your Dentist Misled You
What your dentist placed on your teeth are dental crowns, not porcelain veneers. I’ve placed an image above as reference for the difference in tooth preparation for porcelain veneers versus dental crowns. You said your teeth are little nubs. That is what is done for dental crowns which completely surround the tooth. Porcelain veneers only cover the front and hug the sides a bit.
Your Crowns Won’t Stay In
Dental crowns can be kept in with simple dental cement. They don’t require bonding technology the way some procedures do. Yes, it seems your dentist cannot seem to do that either. Most dentists go their entire careers without one crown falling off, let alone having one a week fall off. One of the basic expectations in dental work is that is stays in your mouth. The exception to that would be removable dental work, such as dentures. This is a gross violation of the standard of care.
Dental Sedation
For porcelain veneers (and even porcelain crowns) dental sedation is unnecessary unless the patient requests it because of dental anxiety. You mentioned nothing about requesting it or dental anxiety. In fact, you seemed surprised by its requirement. Even if you did, Ativan is a bad choice for this. It has a serum half-life of 24 hours, which is why you are out for so long. Most dentists chose Trialozam which has a half life of just 3 hours. Though, in all honesty, if you do not have dental anxiety, your dentist should have just used Novacain which is significanly less expensive and less disruptive to your day because it doesn’t make you sleepy.
Where Do You Go From Here?
I suggest you tell your dentist that you want her to pay to have this done properly by a dentist of your choosing. Because she gave you crowns and not veneers, combined with your teeth grinding, means your teeth are at a greater risk of breaking off in the future. Hopefully, that won’t happen. Then, find a dentist with better credentials. You can do this in your new location when you move or try to do it now. It’s up to you.
This blog is brought to you by Libertyville Dentist Dr. David Potts.