Gingival health associated with porcelain veneers on maxillary incisors

The possible detrimental effect of acid-etched resin-bonded prostheses and porcelain veneers on plaque accumulation and gingival health is currently disputed. Some workers recommend no tooth preparation prior to veneering whilst others recommend tooth preparation to prevent adverse gingival soft tissue reactions. In order to test the possible gingival effects of veneers placed without tooth preparation, this study was set up to compare gingival health on veneered and non-veneered maxillary incisors within the same individual during periods of normal tooth cleaning and of no tooth cleaning. No significant differences were noted in plaque or gingival indices, or in gingival crevicular fluid volume, between the 72 veneered and non-veneered sites during either study period. The results of this study suggest that placing porcelain veneers on unprepared teeth does not increase the risk of gingivitis.