Question:
My friend did tooth whitening and she had great results. I go to the same
dentist and he made me some trays and I used them with Nupro White for
almost every night for three weeks (every other night the last week because
they were getting sensitive).
I really didn't notice much of a difference.
So my dentist told me to just do the top teeth for a couple weeks so I
could compare with the bottom and really tell if I was making any progress.
After a week my top teeth look just like the bottom teeth.
I know I'm doing it right because in the morning after I take the tray off
my teeth are covered in the gel.
Is this common for some people to have no results after this amount of
time? I wouldn't care so much if not for the $350 the whitening has cost
all for apparently nothing.
Answer:
I don't do a lot of bleaching in my office, but apparently it is quite
common to get greater or lesser color change depending upon just what
the cause of the stain is. Sorry, this is just the luck of the draw.
I don't do a lot of bleaching either. Mainly because I tell patients
exactly what to expect . 1 1/2 to 2 shades lighter. Gray teeth
may be less.
So, you stroll in with A-3 teeth (pretty average) and want them
bleached, you might get to A-1. I hold the shade buttons up to the
teeth and tell them if it's worth the money to them, go for it.
I also tell them that there is no reason to pay for in office power
bleaching unless they have a Friday appt. with the dentist and they
want white teeth for a reunion on Saturday. Six months down the road,
all bleach systems are pretty much equal.
I have had a few A-4 cases that have bleached out to A-1. Those are
the ones you take pictures of, but those results are not common.
1 When you do bleaching, you want to make sure that you do not have
any caps or fillings or veneers on your teeth. The bleaching will not
change the colour of these restorations.
2 if you use a tray system, you want to use a good fitting tray
3 you want to use a professional gel either 15-22% carbamide peroxide
or
7-9% hydrogen peroxide.
4 you should use a shade guide take a picture of the guide next to
your teeth so that you can compare. do the same at the end when you
are done bleaching.
5 Brush your teeth before the bleaching **and** it would be nice that
you had your teeth professionally cleaned before you start. Some
people have tartar covering their teeth and they wonder why the gell
is not working.
6 do not sleep with the trays do it during the day when your head is
upright.
7 make sure you place the gel in the right place Manufacturer's
instructions may not be ideal.
8 wear the gell for 45min to 1 hour then either change the gel or do
this another day if you have sensitivity.
9 after bleaching stay away from coloured foods for 24h
10 lasting effects vary based on your diet.
Consider having Brite Smile done.
I occasionally get patients that were told by their dentist that
nothing will bleach their teeth, and after the procedure, there was
significant improvement.
And I take photos to document the results. Brite Smile guarantees your
satisfaction so you have nothing to lose.
On my website www.smilesbyalex.com click on britesmile then gallery
there you can see how on average teeth get whiter with britesmile.
Also the shades that some of the other doctors were refering to are
from the original "VITA" shade guide. Almost every dentist has this in
their office.
When the shade guide comes from the manufacturer, it is arrainged by
"Brightness" not colour. What I mean by this is that if you were to
photograph this guide in black and white film you then arrainge it by
brightness.
Most dentists have this guide arrainged by colour groups because it
makes it easier to match teeth for caps etc...
what that means to you is that going from A3 to A1 is not 2 shades but
3.
There are some people that have "green" tinge to their teeth, and they
think that whitening will make their teeth "white" right away. This is
not true before the colour fades, the teeth will first become a
lighter shade of "green" or brighter.
If your diet does not permit you to have "white teeth", then there are
other methods of getting white teeth where you do not need to worry
about bleaching ever again.
Here we go again? putting words in my mouth.... then surprize "I'm a
piece of work".
Did I mention anything about duration of whitening effects compared to
trays???
no I didn't did I.
We are comparing 1h britesmile treatment with multiple applications of
a tray system over a period of weeks and which may or may not be
convienent to this patient.
