Tooth Whitening And Tooth Bleaching

706 Words2 Pages

Tooth whitening or tooth bleaching

Tooth whitening is either restoration of natural tooth shade or whitening beyond natural tooth shade.
Restoration of the underlying, natural tooth shade is possible by simply removing stains on the surface(e.g. from coffee, tea, red wine and tobacco) & calculus (tartar). This is achieved by having the teeth cleaned by a Dentist (commonly termed "scaling & polishing").
Natural tooth is whitened via bleaching procedure. It is very common in cosmetic dentistry and different techniques are used by dentists.
Types of Tooth staining and discoloration
Teeth may be darkened by surface stains (extrinsic staining), which covers the natural tooth color; or the tooth itself may discolor (intrinsic staining).
Causes …show more content…

Bleaching techniques
1. In office- can be more readily controlled and monitored by professional.
It reduces the risk of patients selecting and using wrong products, product misuse, inappropriate application procedures and effects of undiagnosed disease.
2. Home bleach- easy to use, time-saving and cost-effective.
Home tooth whitening methods include chewing gums, rinses, toothpastes, paint-on films,bleaching strips, bleaching pen, bleaching gel, and laser tooth whitening.

The effects of both at-home and in-office bleaching are temporary .
Follow-up treatments have often been found to be necessary in between one and three years.
Both the techniques are effective but results may vary depending on factors like type of stain, age of patient, concentration of the bleaching agent, and treatment time and frequency.

Contra-indications
Pre-existing sensitive teeth
Acid erosion
Receding gums (gingival recession)
Sensitive gums
Sensitive to hydrogen peroxide
Defective dental restorations
Pregnant or lactating women
Children under the age of 16- Tooth whitening could irritate the pulp or cause it to become sensitive as pulp chambers are large at this

More about Tooth Whitening And Tooth Bleaching

Open Document