Have you ever had a crown or veneer pop off a tooth? If you’ve never experienced having a tooth restoration dislodge and pop off you are lucky. Where most veneers last what seems to be a lifetime, others can pop off from time to time. Anything can cause a veneer or crown to come loose, so if this happens to you, here’s what to do with a veneer.
Remove the veneer from your mouth, rinse with cold water and place the veneer in a safe, protective container and call your dentist. It’s important not to put the veneer back on your tooth yourself. Porcelain veneers are fragile and delicate and can chip if not handled with care. Although they can take what seems like a great deal of force from chewing, when off of the tooth they can easily chip or break. If the veneer is unharmed your dentist will most likely be able to reattach the veneer to your tooth. They will first carefully place it back on your tooth to see if it fits and that the veneer was not compromised when it came off. Before permanently re-setting a veneer, it will need to be sandblasted to resurface the inside.
If the internal porcelain on a veneer is exposed it will need to have the surface re-etched with hydrofluoric acid before re-bonding the veneer. Even a broken veneer can be reattached if it is a clean break. Reattached veneers can last as long as the original veneers if handled and rebounded by an experienced dentist. If you have veneers wearing a custom fitted night guard can help prevent most veneers from popping off. Many times the root of a problematic veneer is bruxism, (the clenching or grinding of teeth).