I have tetracycline stains and my dentist said dental bonding would take care of it. It has not worked out at all like I wanted. First, the color doesn’t match and it is pretty obvious. Plus, you can still see some of the tetracycline stains through it. As if that weren’t bad enough, the bonding fell off after just three days. I went back for him to repair it. At the time, I told him about the color problem so he made them thicker, which looks weird in its own way. Now they have fallen off again just a few days later. I called him back and he said they’re not meant to be permanent so I should not have high expectations. However, I was told they’d last up to five years, this is like just a few days. What should I do?

Calorie

Dear Calorie,

As you can see from the image above dental bonding can blend in quite naturally with your teeth. I think the biggest problem you are facing is the skill and technical knowledge of your dentist. Both dental bonding and tetracycline stains are some of the most advanced procedures in cosmetic dentistry. You should be aware that cosmetic dentistry is not a recognized specialty. Any general dentist can call themselves a cosmetic dentist regardless of the amount of training they have invested (or not invested) in.

I think your dentist is in way over his head. Dental bonding should not fall off, especially after just a few days. As for the color, if he is an inexperienced cosmetic dentist, he probably doesn’t even have the colors and other materials necessary to make things blend well. An additional problem in dealing with tetracycline stains is making the teeth opaque enough to cover the stains, while translucent enough to look natural. That is not an easy accomplishment, even for a skilled cosmetic dentist.

Honestly, the better treatment for you would be porcelain veneers and not bonding. It is more permanent, decades rather than years. Plus, it is more stain-resistant. I don’t think your dentist is the one to do it. Here is my advice. Do not let him “fix” this. instead, ask for a refund. Then, we’re going to get you to a highly skilled cosmetic dentist.

Finding an Expert Cosmetic Dentist

Because there is not a recognized specialty in cosmetic dentistry it is hard for patients to know who has the skills and who doesn’t. There is a website that strives to help patients in your position. A retired cosmetic dentist runs the mynewsmile.com website. He prescreens all dentists that want to be listed on his site. They cannot purchase their way on. Instead, they have to show their training credentials, in addition to proving their artistry and skill on cases they’ve completed. Any dentist he lists can provide you with a stunning smile.

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