Question:
When I was 10 my brother threw me off a bed in a scuffle and my front tooth on
my front left was damged and crowned. Ive been considering teeth whitening.
My question is how is the best way to go about it? Do the process and then
match the crown? Will the other teeth fade much faster than the crown? Would
you actually advise against it in my unique situation. Again just considering
it at this point.
Answer:
Bleaching and then replacing crowns is the way to do it. The other teeth will
not "fade", however, the factors which made your teeth the color they are now,
will be at work once again, and the teeth will darken. Natural teeth and crown
materials may stain at a different pace, however, this is somewhat dependant on
what is causing the staining.
I am not a huge fan of bleaching, as I think many times it looks unnatural. Some
people like their teeth to look bathtub porcelain white, I think it looks lousy.
I am particularly reluctant to recommend bleaching on people with anterior
crowns for the very reason you mention. Cleaning the natural teeth well, and
matching a porcelain shade to this will insure a long, natural appearance.
Adding bleaching into the mix means you are matching an unnatural target, and
may mean you need to undergo bleaching repeatedly.
Other may feel differently, but unless the shade of your own teeth is a huge
issue, I would avoid it.
I find a lot of people feel that way. When I ask WHY they want their teeth
bleached, many give an answer like yours. It is not my job to judge any one's
motivation, but I do try to make them aware of the pros and cons. In your
situation, where maintaining a balance between the shade of your newly bleached
teeth and crowns made to match those pearly whites would be a challenge, I would
recommend against it unless it is a huge concern and you are fully aware of the
fact you are going to need to keep up with the bleaching, or those two crowns,
no matter how well made, are going to stand out like a sore thumb.
