I’m not sure what to do. My dentist is a family friend. I’ve been unhappy with my smile most of my life. I finally told him I want to do something about my tetracycline stains. He’s suggesting we do six porcelain crowns. I was hoping for porcelain veneers, but he feels crowns will last longer and give me a better chance of covering the stains. I know he’s the dentist, but I feel weird about grinding down my teeth. I think I trust him. I’d just feel better getting a second opinion. I feel very disloyal, but it is a big step.
Elena
Dear Elena,
Don’t feel disloyal. Any medical practitioner should be fine with you getting a second opinion. This is your body and big changes require contemplative thought. It’s always a good idea to get more than one professional’s opinion. Always. In this case, it could save your teeth.
When you’re talking about covering tetracycline stains, you don’t just need a good dentist, you need the best cosmetic dentist. Truthfully, only the top 1% of cosmetic dentists can handle tetracycline cases beautifully. I feel pretty certain your dentist isn’t on this list.
I know he’s a family friend and that makes it complicated. But, the fact that he’s suggesting dental crowns over porcelain veneers is my first clue. This requires you to remove a lot of healthy tooth structure, unnecessarily. Porcelain veneers are a much better procedure for this. My guess is he thinks the added porcelain will make it easier to cover the tetracycline. It won’t.
Finding the Best Cosmetic Dentist
I want to suggest you look for a dentist who is Accredited with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. While any dentist can be a member of the AACD, to become accredited they have to pass stringent exams as well as provide visual evidence of a large number of specific cosmetic cases they’ve done in order to demonstrate their artistry.
It takes years to become accredited and those who reach that level are the top cosmetic dentists in the world. Any one of them will have the skills to give you a beautiful smile which completely covers your tetracycline stains while still looking completely natural.
It will be worth it even if you need to travel to a nearby state to find one. The website for the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry (aacd.com) has a link which helps you locate cosmetic dentists in your area. Just be sure to place a checkmark by accredited so they know what level you’re looking for.
This blog is brought to you by Des Moines Dentist Dr. Phelan Thomas.