Can You Get Veneers with Missing Teeth?

If you’re in the market for a dental restoration because you’re missing one or more teeth, you may have happened upon information about dental veneers, and you may wonder if they would be an option for you. Veneers are a cosmetic dental treatment that involves bonding a thin sheet of porcelain material to the front of an existing tooth, covering any chips or cracks and hiding stains and discoloration that can’t be effectively cleaned. Because dental veneers are very thin, they rely on an existing tooth for support, which means that you can’t get dental veneers if there isn’t a tooth present. Don’t let this discourage you, though. There are many great options for replacing missing teeth, and there are many great reasons to replace a missing tooth, even if it’s not in a visible area in the mouth.

It may be easy to ignore a missing tooth when it’s in an area that isn’t commonly seen. Even if you can still chew and speak normally, if you’re missing even a single tooth, there are multiple risks in leaving this untreated. When a tooth falls out, it makes room for the nearby teeth to migrate, gradually becoming crooked. This adversely affects the alignment of the bite, and it also makes the teeth harder to clean, increasing the likelihood of gum disease. As the bone near the missing tooth deteriorates in the absence of a root, the adjacent bone is compromised and therefore more susceptible to gum disease, which increases the chances that one missing tooth will gradually lead to many missing teeth. Veneers can be a cosmetic solution when the teeth are supported by healthy bone and gum tissue, but when the teeth are missing, cosmetic solutions often aren’t enough.

Treating gum disease can help restore the bone to health, but where any teeth are missing, the bone will continue to deteriorate due to lack of stimulation. Dental implants are a dental restoration option that replaces the natural tooth roots with tiny posts made of titanium or another biocompatible material. As the bone surrounding this post heals, the newly healthy tissue fuses to the post and creates a permanent bond that will provide a durable and permanent base for an artificial tooth or even a row of multiple teeth. Sometimes, dental implants can be used to support a partial denture, and sometimes as few as two dental implants can be used to support a full denture. The most aesthetically appealing dental implants are those that use a single implant to support an individual crown that matches the natural teeth in color and translucence; these crowns are often made of a luminous white ceramic material, like porcelain. Porcelain dental implants will have an appearance similar to porcelain veneers only more natural, and dental implants can be maintained with the same hygiene routine as natural teeth. Brushing twice daily and flossing daily, in addition to seeing your dentist twice yearly for a checkup and professional cleaning, can help you maintain the health, utility, and appearance of dental implants for a lifetime.