Anyone have their front teeth bonded due to wear?

[beaujolais]

Anyone have their front teeth bonded due to wear?

I just had a consult with a restorative/cosmetic dentist who suggested this for my front upper & lowers due to wear. He said if left as they are, they are more susceptible to wear and break down, which makes sense.

Please tell me about your experience, if you are glad you did it, if insurance covered any of it and how costly it was (if you'd feel o.k. sharing).

What was super cool is he did a "mock" bonding on my front two uppers (for free) so I could really see what it would look like. It took him two minutes to do it, at the most. They were gorgeous. It was sad second or two when he rubbed them off.

Thanks all!

 

[Queenie60]

I would get a second opinion on this, or even a third. Bonding is very expensive and will need to be redone in about 8 years or so. Also, they file your teeth down to itty bitty little stubs before putting the bonding on. I had a dentist suggest bonding to me and when I went for another opinion, was told that I have beautiful teeth and just needed a few minor adjustments. I did the adjustment, whitening and am now very pleased with my smile.

 

[PintoBean]

Im a little confused. When you say bonded teeth, it gets me thinking about tooth colored fillings. Also, when my DH passed out in the supermarket and broke four front teeth, the dentist built them back up with the bonding resin as a temporary remedy so that he looked more cosmetically pleasing, as opposed to someone that eats rocks.

After his veneers were made, his teeth were filed down , and the veneers were attached.

so do you mean adding resin to your teeth or putting in veneers?

 

[beaujolais]

I believe it is adding resin, which he called bonding. No filing would be involved.

 

[PintoBean]

I believe it is adding resin, which he called bonding. No filing would be involved.

That's cool. It should be relatively safe. All my silver fillings have been replaced now with bonding resin, and one time, there was a very sensitive spot on the side of a tooth and the dentist put a little bonding there. Just call me a bond girl hahaha

The only downside is that my insurance only covers for silver fillings, so every time bonding is used I pay out of pocket. since this sounds like a cosmetic treatment, it probably won't be covered by insurance I guess?

I would just double check if you have to baby the bonded teeth when you eat. For my DH, since the temp bonds were built up to mimic fake teeth, as opposed to yours being a reinforcement on existing teeth, he couldn't bite with them at all. Even with the veneers he's careful. I also find that I crack bonded fillings every few years. It is a stress thing though that I've developed as an adult... It's from holding the stress in my jaw and clenching. So while I had silver fillings as a child, the stress level was different... Not really an apples to apples comparison.

Ok, I'm done exhausting you with my rambling.

 

[Paill1990]

Hi. My front teeth were chipped in an accident and had to undergo a restorative procedure. I have had many dental issues since childhood and I am a frequent visitor to my dentist in Burlington. I think a dentist can help you much better regarding the cost and insurance as it may differ. You can directly contact a dentist ( http://www.pearldentalburlington.com/contact_us ) and clarify your doubts.

 

[Queenie60]

I would get a second opinion on this, or even a third. Bonding is very expensive and will need to be redone in about 8 years or so. Also, they file your teeth down to itty bitty little stubs before putting the bonding on. I had a dentist suggest bonding to me and when I went for another opinion, was told that I have beautiful teeth and just needed a few minor adjustments. I did the adjustment, whitening and am now very pleased with my smile.

Sorry, I misunderstood. I thought you meant the veneers. This is what I was referring to. Didn't mean to confuse the subject.

 

[missy]

Sonoma, I think I had one of my front teeth bonded about 12 years ago because it cracked and was also thinning quite a lot. The dentist did not know why this happened to my front tooth (he thought perhaps because I ate a lot of hard fruit etc) but it did. Anyway it lasted only about 6 or 7 years and broke again and another dentist did the minimum bonding to it to fix it because he said you want to do as little as possible so as to prevent high maintenance in the future. It was a while back and I don't remember the details. My front tooth is imperfect and I live with it for now.

Sorry I don't remember if insurance covered it and how much it cost but it was over a decade ago so it wouldn't be relevant now anyway.

When/If it breaks again I will research the various options available at that time. The reason I am responding to your post is to share with you (though you probably already know) that bonding is not forever and you have to be careful with it and take good care of it to make it last. Good luck and keep us posted on how it goes.

 

[House Cat]

My two front teeth are bonded to fill in a gap. I've now had this done twice. It looks very nice. I think a bit more natural than some veneers ad the price was definitely better. The problem is that bonding on the front teeth is very fragile. I can't stress that enough. I can't even bite into an apple. I even have to be careful about biting into pieces of meat or anything tough. I have already had a tiny piece chip off of my new bonding in less than a year. If you are having the actual biting surfaces of your front teeth bonded and you are paying good money for the procedure, I encourage you to get another opinion. The bonding will probably chip off in about a year.

I had a hair dresser whose front teeth were chipped due to opening bobby pins so frequently with her teeth. Her dentist bonded the chips but she said it all wore off in no time. These weren't big chips in her teeth, but they were noticeable and there were many.

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

I had a very small area (front tooth) that needed bonding and it did not hold....in fact it crumbled within a few weeks of application. But in all fairness, it was not "guaranteed". I just live with an slightly uneven tooth.

cheers--Sharon

 

[beaujolais]

I wanted to thank you all for your responses. As usual, I learned tons here from the smart PSers. So maybe bonding isn't the best option for biting surfaces as it seems it may not hold well. That is lots of money to spend considering the fragility/limited lifespan of many bondings. I truly appreciate your help! You all have just saved me tons of money, most likely. Thanks again, so very much!

 

[mary poppins]

I had one of my front teeth bonded many years ago to match the shape of the other front tooth and partially fill in a gap. The dentist just added some compound to my existing tooth. I've never had any problems with it. One thing to be aware of is some things like coffee, tea or smoking can cause your teeth to change color, but the bonding remains the same color so be sure to care for your teeth. Conversely, if you whiten your teeth, the bonding will remain the same color and you would have to get work done to make the bonded portion match your whitened color.

I had a roommate whose experience was like some of the prior posters in this thread. She chipped her front tooth, got it bonded, and the bonding would sometimes come off when she bit into something. She's have to get work done again, but walk around with a chipped tooth while waiting for her appointment.

A second opinion and getting a recommendation for skilled dentist is always prudent.

 

[missy]

Now that your brought this issue up I'm realizing again how imperfect my smile is due to my teeth.
Hope you find the perfect solution for you Sonoma.
These days personally I leave well enough alone and will continue living with crooked bottom teeth and a less than nice front tooth. For now.

Please let us know what you decide and how it turns out. Might just be the impetus I (and others here) need to fix my (their) tooth.

 

[manderz]

I have one bonded due to a weird twist it has, and another one was rebuilt with the tooth colored filling material after I fell and broke it off. I was 8 and trying to power slide I have had no issues with mine. The "fake tooth" is 25 years old, and the bonding is a couple. I don't think the bonding is very close to the biting surface, though.

 

[AprilBaby]

If your teeth need bonding because of wear, new bonding is going to pop right off because of grinding which is what is causing the wear. Get a bite guard for night time. If they are shortened and need cosmetic improvement only veneers or crowns will help in the long run and both will be considered cosmetic which will probably be 100 % out of pocket. The bite guard will prevent further wear.

 

[beaujolais]

No, I don't grind. I used to, for a bit, a zillion years ago but no more. I had a bite guard back then and despite many prolonged attempts found it impossible to sleep with. I am quite careful with my teeth now. They are also worn because I am old. They did not have the best dental information and care back then, too.