When would you recommend lumineers instead of veneers?

If your teeth are fairly straight and you want to make them whiter and improve the shape, Lumineers can be a great solution.

I have used different types of veneers from ceramic materials to different levels of full prep, minimal prep and no prep veneers including Lumineers and Cristal veneers as two fine examples of ceramic labs we work with for the latter.  Every patient is unique and treatment options are numerically ordered depending on the case.  For those cases that minimal to no prep veneers are adequate to get beautiful aesthetic results, full thickness veneers are then put lower down on the list of options, as, tooth preservation is ALWAYS ideal.Find a dentist that has completed all different types of veneer cases and see what is right for your situation.

I've done and placed both traditional porcelain veneers and the most recent generation of Lumineers (IPS eMax).  If you’re just looking to have WHITE teeth with minimal tooth details, then Lumineers is the one. All my of Lumineers patients are happy with their results.  They're stronger materials (Lithium Disilicate) than porcelain veneers and patient teeth doesn’t get ground down as much.  A huge perk is that current Lumineers cases are mostly "no prep" technique with patient's teeth with some cases "minimal prep" (some recontouring of teeth)!  Not all patients are candidate for Lumineers so make sure you visit an official certified Lumineer doctor for an complete evaluation.  Locate a certified Lumineer doctor in your area. If you want LIFE-LIKE teeth with different shades of white and other colors in the same tooth, then feldspathic porcelain veneers are for you. Because porcelain is more fragile, they need to be thicker than Lumineers. Because of their thickness, more of your tooth structure will need to be removed/ground down for the porcelain veneers to not look bulky once they’re on your teeth. Porcelain veneers are more detailed than Lumineers veneers. So it all basically comes down to do you want durability with minimal teeth grinding or do you want the most realistic detailed looking teeth and don’t care about your teeth being grind away? 

Thank you for your question. A lot of patients are interested in the same question. Consider this. Anytime teeth are flared out AND you want them to be tacked in, consider standard veneers.When teeth are lingually inclined, i.e. tucked in, non preparation veneers like Lumineers can be considered. Lumineers are actually only one brand no prep veneers. There are others, and in my opinion better ones, like for example Durathins.Another consideration is how perfect you want your smile to be. If you want improvement, Lumineers are ok. On the other hand, perfection requires porcelain veneers done by an experienced cosmetic dentist and technician.

I prefer porcelain veneers over lumineers because they fit better and look better. 

This is alwyas the case. 

 

Best,

Dr. Alper

Anyone who recommends Lumineers over regular veneers simply doesn't know what they are talking about.  Lumineers are substandard venners created by a company with great marketing. 

Both Lumineers and traditional porcelain veneers have their strengths and weaknesses. Both systems used in appropriate situations and done correctly will transform a smile. 

Lumineers CAN work when you are doing a LOT of them (for example, at least eight to ten teeth). In that situation the shape and size can be generally matched. I would do Lumineers for someone who is not too picky about the final result. There WILL be variations in the colorations, because the thicknesses of the Lumineers will vary.

Another consideration is that the bite has to be matched extremely well for the Lumineers (or any porcelain veneers) to hold up well. 

In general, the main advertised advantage for Lumineers is that the teeth are not prepared, drilled or shaved down.  There are other systems (other brands) that can allow that same non-invasive approach, but done in a way to give more personalization and better color matching. I choose this approach MOST of the time.

Any veneers can be a big improvement, but beautifully crafted, thoughtfully color matched, and meticulously bonded, and precision matching of the bite will provide you with MNAY years of beauty and a magnificent smile, without regrets! (and the envy of your friends).

Prepless veneers, of which Lumineers are one brand name, can look fantastic and have nice finish lines. Unfortunately it requires an absolute master ceramist and highly skilled and trained dentist to deliver this.  When you need bigger teeth (to fill spaces or broaden the smile) they can look great if done exceptionally well.  When done in the wrong case, it's a disaster.  Luckily, they can be removed and brought back to original shape (I've done it for veneers done in another office) but then that's money down the drain.  Like the others here, I have seen more bad than good.

I have yet to see a Lumineers case that I considered "aesthetically accceptable" in my mind. I agree with Dr. Jablow that they can cause ledges at the gumline and cause inflammation. This inflammation is caused from an un-natural emergence profile that that new tooth has. All a Lumineer is is a no-prep veneer. Dentistry has been doing "no-prep" veneers ever since veneers were invented. I understand you are concerned about tooth reduction. Go to an experienced cosmetic dentist and explain this to them. They can usually indicate to you that they will remain conservative in the reduction of CERTAIN areas of your tooth- not just the entire tooth.