Is Whitening Right for You? (2 of 2)

Whitening


First come in for your normal hygiene appointment and tell my team that you are concerned about your stains. 90 percent of the stains can be removed from your regular hygiene appointment. Most of the stains are attached to the plaque and calculus stuck to the rough surfaces of your teeth. These stains can be removed with the ultrasonic machine. However, not all stains can be removed as seen below on the left those are stains that we can remove. The general yellowing of the patient on the right can not be removed with a cleaning. 






Image result for yellow teethImage result for calculus teeth






           CAN BE CLEANED                                                                                            CANNOT BE CLEANED
After your cleaning we will tell you if these stains can/cannot be removed or if the general yellowness of the tooth is due to long term staining. Then we will offer you three choices



First Choice. OTC white strips. If you know your teeth are not normally sensitive and your not afraid of some post whitening sensitivity you can go to the pharmacy and pick up some do it yourself whitening strips.  These strips have been proven to work; however, all of my patients report of severe sensitivity after using the strips. They are able to reproduce professional whitening agents because all whitening agents essentially is a variation of our standard bleach. This is why we also call whitening "bleaching". The percentage and makeup of that bleaching agent varies from product to product.  These strips are one size fits all and can be easily purchased for a very cheap cost. The catch is though because it is not fit snugly on to your tooth it can be very abrasive to your gums if not properly placed. They also tend to cause significant sensitivity because they contain very high levels of bleach. If you already know that little bit of hot and cold food makes you tingle don't even bother with this product. You will be in a world of pain. 

Second Choice at home whitening kit

You will come to the office and we will take two simple impressions of your teeth and you will come back in a week or less to pick up special trays that are trimmed a certain way for maximum effect and comfort. This is my most recommended way for 90 percent of my patients. For a low cost you can have trays that will last a long time with professional bleaching products that have been proven to work. We can also pick and chose products depending on your situation that best suits your needs. These products can still produce sensitivity, but by picking the correct product we can decrease that sensitivity. Also we will usually provide you with some in house fluoride treatment after your sessions to prevent further sensitivity. 

Third Choice In office whitening 

Last way is through in office whitening. This is for that last minute wedding or banquet you have to attend and for those people who just have too much sensitivity to any at home treatment. This will be a longer appointment but all you have to do is sit there and watch your favorite TV show for about an hour. 

Image result for tooth sensitivityPatients arrive and have their teeth cleaned and are shown a set of shades so we can determine their shade before and figure out about how many treatments he/she will need. We will isolate your teeth from your gums and start the treatment. The best thing about this treatment is that if sensitivity starts we can pause treatment and immediately treat it if necessary. Also you are done in one appointment so no in home trays. How long does this last you say?  The same as if you were to do regular whitening(around 3-6 months depending on your habits). With the in office whitening we will also include in the package the at home whitening kit, which you can use on your own from time to time to keep up the whiteness of your teeth. This will allow you to keep your pearly whites for years. 


Image result for overly white teethMy last remark before I sign off is that. Do you remember the episode of friends where Ross forgot to take off his bleaching trays overnight and woke up with these super white teeth. First, he would be in a lot of pain if that really happened but the most important lesson in that show is that please don't ask us for the magazine white teeth. First , it looks incredibly unnatural and we cannot reverse the process.  You would just have to wait for the natural 
process of staining to return. Models on magazines don't actually have teeth of that color. They are photo-shopped that way. It looks nice on photos but in person you'll look like a clown. Make an appointment today to see us and you will be on your way with your new pearly whites.

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