Teeth Whitening

I am most frequently asked when I am at work or just out having dinner about teeth whitening. There are so many new things on the market that can help with teeth whitening. I am sure you have heard on the radio and TV about Zoom Bleaching. The way this is done you come into the dental office for a couple hours and have your teeth isolated with a rubber dam protecting your gums and then the bleach is applied to your teeth. The bleach sits on your teeth while we move a special light that activates the bleach and shines on your teeth for a period of time. Some people need a couple of treatments and some just one.

As an Orlando Dentist I don't recommend this to many of my patients even though it can be profitable for your practice. I have found many of the patients have extreme cold sensitivity after this procedure. There are products you can use before and after this treatment to help but they can still stay sensitive to cold. I have found in my practice I like making my patients professional laboratory custom trays. In all the research you can get the teeth as white as with the zoom Bleaching without the sensitivity. I start the patient at a lower concentration and make sure they use the fluoride I recommend. I will work them up to stronger bleach as long as we do not get sensitivity. This is my favorite way. Also in the future if they want to touch up they have the trays and just add the bleach. This is ideal if you are going to a Wedding and want a little extra white. My patients when they follow this regimen have minimal to no post op sensitivity.
A simple way to get started is to buy Crest White strips which are not real strong but you do still get results. Follow the directions and if you like what you see you can go to the next level of bleaching with the trays. There are other ways to get the quick boost, but with those your risk is sensitivity.

There also are many brands of bleach out there and some can cause more sensitivity than others. My favorite bleach is by American Hygienics and I have minimal sensitivity with my technique. I also recommend when you are going to have new crowns made to bleach first, this will get you to the color you want so you can now have the crowns made whiter to match.
Please feel free to email me with any of your more specific questions.

Thanks Dr. Aschacher