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Q: What is Dental tooth whitening?
A: Since 90% of my patients request whiter teeth, dental bleaching has become the most popular procedure in the past few years. It is non-invasive, painless and safe. There are several ways to whiten teeth:
1. In-office laser bleaching
2. Home bleaching or combination of both.
Laser bleaching is done through applying the whitening jell to the front of the tooth surface and activating the laser.
It takes almost 1 hour in the office. With home bleaching, you apply a milder whitening solution inside custom-made trays that you wear for several hours during the day or night. The best results can achieve from the combination of both.
Bleaching is relatively inexpensive and usually brightens the teeth quickly and easily, but it does not work equally well on everyone and therefore results can be less predictable. Newly bleached teeth tend to fade in color anywhere from 6 month to 7,5 years. Teeth that are very dark, especially from tetracycline stains, bleach the poorest. The best results are seen in people who were born with white teeth but over the years stained them with coffee, tobacco, tea and red wine.
Documented University studies demonstrate that bleaching causes no damage to the tooth structure. People can have some temporary tooth sensitivity if they overbleach by leaving the trays for a longer time than prescribed.
Q: What types of fillings are available now?
A: For many years we used silver (amalgam) and gold fillings in the back teeth but as esthetics became more and more important, patients were asking for tooth colored filling even in posterior region of the mouth. Composite (resin) type and porcelain can now be used to fill the teeth. Porcelain is more durable then composite and tends to be used where a big portion of the tooth needs to be replaced by a filling or an already existing filling is in place. Composite filling can be used where a small restoration is necessary (usually covering a single surface).
Q: How can I improve my smile if I have crooked, chipped or discolored teeth?
A: We can change crooked or chipped teeth by placing porcelain veneers or porcelain crowns on the teeth. It is the best way to achieve a long lasting, stain resistant, white but natural looking smile. The veneers are least invasive type of restoration but if patient does not have enough tooth structure to place a veneer we can place porcelain jacket crowns to achieve the same results. Veneers give us the illusion of perfect teeth and perfect alignment without orthodontics or braces.
Q: How do I know if the veneers are the right choice for me?
A: Patient must be sure that this is something he/she wants because the process (though minimally invasive) is not reversible. One way to be sure is to do a "Trial Smile" procedure. This is a process where the dentist takes impression of the teeth and laboratory fabricates a plastic stents and then using Luxaflow, which is a plastic/composite, tooth colored material can be directly applied to the teeth in the mouth. Patients can wear these plastic veneers up to 24 hours and see if this is something they truly want. The process is not invasive and there is no alteration to the tooth structure, so it is completely reversible. This allows a true representation of what veneers can look like in the mouth. This is much more exact then computer imaging because it is custom made for each patient.
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DENTAL WHITENER
