There are 2 ways to align crooked teeth.
1) Orthodontically.
The teeth are moved into the correct place using braces or aligners (such as Invisalign). This is the least minimally invasive option.
Depending on the case, sometimes cosmetic alignment of only the front teeth may be done to keep treatment time short. However, this may sometimes look strange if the rest of the teeth are not very well aligned.
2) Prosthetically.
This is the fastest method to align teeth, and can be accomplished within a matter of weeks.
The teeth are shaved down to accomodate veneers or crowns in the current positions. This is an irreversible procedure and there may be issues with the final proportions of the teeth (since the spacing issues would not be corrected. For example, the upper right lateral incisor would appear narrower in relation to the one on the left).
When teeth are misaligned, the root angulation and gumline will also be irregular. This cannot be fixed using veneers alone.
Veneers and crowns can also chip or break. This means that you will need the veneer or crown redone. Each time this is done, there will be less tooth structure remaining at the end which reduces the lifespan of the tooth. This may mean losing the tooth prematurely.
