Here's Why You Should Never Reattach Your Own Dental Veneer

Posted on: 30 December 2020

If a dental veneer detaches from the underlying tooth, all a dentist generally needs to do is bond it back into place. It sounds quite simple, but unfortunately, this reasoning has led people to think that they can spare themselves the time and expense of visiting a dentist, and can glue the veneer back into place themselves. At best, this is unwise. At worst, it can be rather disastrous for your dental health. It is important to let a dentist handle all dental treatments, including veneers.

Adhesive and the Tooth

There are several reasons why a dental veneer can detach. It might be a flaw in the bonding process, where the adhesive destabilizes to the point that it can no longer hold the veneer in place. It might also be due to a change to its foundation, which is the tooth it's bonded to. A properly-applied veneer offers protection to the underlying tooth, but this isn't an unbreakable line of defense. If the tooth has deteriorated beneath the veneer, the veneer can't be reattached without addressing this deterioration.

Encouraging Bacteria

Gluing a veneer back onto a tooth with an altered surface area can create a considerable problem. Small cracks and imperfections in the surface of the tooth create tiny hollows where harmful oral bacteria can accumulate. By reattaching the veneer onto a compromised tooth, you're practically encouraging this bacteria, and further deterioration is likely. The tooth can continue to worsen. It could even ultimately be lost since its decline will be concealed beneath the self-glued veneer. Before a dentist re-attaches a veneer, the tooth is carefully inspected, with any restoration work taking place before the veneer can be put back into position. 

Glue and Technique

The glue utilized in this type of D.I.Y. dentistry is a problem in itself. Household superglues are extremely toxic, and even with the most careful application, you're likely to ingest a small amount. People might think that they can avoid this risk by buying a specialist dental adhesive online, but this creates a hurdle with technique. If the application is anything other than perfectly precise, you run the risk of applying the veneer at an incorrect angle. The adhesive will quickly dry (as it's supposed to do), and the improper position of the veneer makes it look like you have a crooked tooth. These issues are in addition to the health risks associated with applying a veneer to a deteriorated tooth. 

Reattaching a veneer is one of the most straightforward forms of cosmetic dental treatment, but it definitely requires a professional to do the work, and you should not, under any circumstances, attempt to reattach the veneer yourself. For more information about this type of dental treatment, contact a local dental office.

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