The treatment of bleaching of the discoloured and yellowed teeth is called “tooth whitening” process.

Why tooth whitening is needed?

A beautiful smile makes it easy to eliminate a person’s aesthetic concerns. White teeth are a must for a beautiful smile. Bleaching is the most economical and effortless method among aesthetic and restorative applications developed in dentistry.

What causes discoloured teeth?

In particular, habits such as tea, coffee and smoking may cause yellowing and darkening in the colour of the teeth. In addition, the use of antibiotics during early childhood, the use of excessive amounts of fluoride leads to colouring in the teeth. With tooth whitening, you can remove all these discolorations and smile healthily.

Tooth whitening methods

Tooth whitening is applied in 2 ways:

Home bleaching: In this method, your physician will take the size of your teeth and prepare a dental plaque for you. Special molds prevent the whitening agent from contacting your gums. (Plaques sold in pharmacies often lead to discomfort in the gums because they do not fit perfectly to the patient’s teeth.) It is necessary to place the bleaching agent in the special molds prepared by your doctor and apply for a few hours a day. The treatment is completed after 1-2 weeks.

Office bleaching: It is a more reliable dental whitening method because it is faster in the clinic and controlled by a dentist. The whitening agent is applied to the teeth in 2-3 sessions of 30-60 minutes and then the blue light that accelerates the bleaching is applied. The number of sessions depends on the condition of the stains and how much whitening.

Who can be a tooth whitening candidate?

The teeth bleaching may be applied to older than 18 years old and non-pregnant individuals, but must be performed under the supervision of a dentist. If there are any caries or other problems, it should be eliminated before the procedure. Not recommended for patients of growing age. In pregnancy, it may be safer to postpone this procedure after pregnancy.

What Are the Side Effects?

Whitening gels may cause temporary sensitivity. Especially the sensitivity to hot and cold is very normal. If sensitivity is not exceeding after 24-48 hours, the use of the bleaching gel should be discontinued. Fluoride to be applied by the dentist, some toothpaste and creams can reduce sensitivity.

After treatment

During the bleaching procedure and after 2 weeks, colorants such as tea, coffee, cigarettes, red wine, should be avoided. If you have yellowing in your teeth, you can have maintenance every 6 months. Whitening is permanent between 6 months and 2 years depending on the person’s habits and tooth structure.