Tooth Bleaching

Tooth darkening can be caused by various reasons such as the changes in the mineral structure of the teeth, food habits, bacterial infections and natural aging process. Tooth bleaching or tooth whitening is the process of removing the pigmentations or discolouration that appears on the enamel of the teeth. Though a common procedure in the general dentistry, most commonly it is practised by the dentists specialised in cosmetic dentistry.

The tooth whitening products contain oxidising chemicals such as hydrogen peroxide and carbamide peroxide. The oxidising agents in these chemicals when used over the teeth will penetrate the porosities in the crystal structure of the enamel of the teeth and break up the stain deposits or pigmentation on the teeth to give it a more whitening effect. It will also bleach the dentin layer that lies underneath the enamel of the teeth over a period of time. Normally the effect of tooth bleaching will last for five to seven years depending on the eating or smoking habit of the person.

There are two methods for bleaching teeth. One can either opt to seek the assistance of a dentist to perform the teeth bleaching process or do it at home with the help of the tooth bleaching products available at the retail drug outlets.

At a dentist’s clinic the doctor will apply the oxidising or bleaching agent over the teeth of the patient. Carbamide peroxide and the hydrogen peroxide are the most commonly used bleaching agents by the doctors. A bleaching gel used by the doctors or in the tooth bleaching ready made products will typically contain up to thirty five percent hydrogen peroxide equivalent in it. Using high concentration of oxidising agents such as hydrogen peroxide and carbamide peroxide may result in chemical burns to the soft tissues surrounding the teeth. To avoid such complications normally dentist’s use a painted a light-curved protective layer on the gums and the papilla.

Home or over-the-counter bleaching method is the second option of tooth bleaching. Home bleaching can be done without the help of a dentist by following the directions that one get along with the tooth whitening kit that he purchases from the drug store. The main inconvenience of using home tooth bleaching product is the time that it requires to complete the tooth bleaching process. The low concentration oxidising agents that can be purchased from the drug counter has to be kept on teeth for several hours a day. It may take five to fourteen days to complete the bleaching process depending on the product that you purchase. When compared to the tooth bleaching done at the clinic this is a slower process and the result also will not be as good as that you can achieve at a dental clinic.

All the stains on teeth will not respond to a typical tooth bleaching procedure. Staining like tetracycline may require prolonged bleaching as it requires continuous treatment for the bleach to reach the dentine layer. Tooth bleaching is less effective on teeth with white spots and decay. Increased tooth sensitivity and the chemical burns are the most commonly seen side effects of tooth bleaching.