Almost everyone’s teeth can be made whiter with the dentistry available
today. Many times a single tooth is darker than all the others and correcting
the shade on the one problem tooth can have a dramatic effect on your
appearance. To change the shade of a single tooth we must first determine the
cause of the discoloration. If the problem is on the surface of the tooth a
simple polishing can often improve the color. If the enamel is discolored then
more aggressive treatment is necessary. Some of the choices available include
bonding, external bleaching, and internal bleaching for teeth that had root
canal therapy, veneers or crowns.
If many teeth need to be made whiter more time is needed. It is usually a
good idea to try a simple procedure like Britesmile before considering veneers
or crowns. But the results from bleaching may not last long enough for you and
it is impossible to predict exactly how white your teeth will get from
bleaching. With crowns and veneers you can get teeth as white as you want and
you can select the exact shade before you have the procedure. But keep in mind
that crowns and most veneers require grinding of the teeth. The newer thin
veneers require little or no grinding of the teeth and are a good option for
many people.
In office bleaching and at home bleaching get similar results but the
difference is the time it takes to get those results. The in office time is
about an hour and the at home procedure takes about 2 or 3 weeks of wearing a
bleaching appliance at least 2 hours a day. Also the cost is a little less for
the at home procedure.
Before you decide what is best for you should ask your dentist for pictures
of patients he treated. Any dentist who does good work would be happy to show
you the type of results he can get and what you can expect from him.
If you do decide to get the treatment done you should then ask if he can
take before and after pictures because it is sometimes hard to remember exactly
what you started with.
