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If you wish to have a brighter smile, then teeth whitening may be an option for you.

Before having your teeth whitened, we will check to make sure your teeth are suitable to be treated. In some cases, treatment may be difficult or ineffective, for example with staining caused during tooth formation by certain antibiotics. Teeth whitening may make your old fillings or crowns look darker after treatment, so it is very important to be checked and advised of this.

We will gauge what condition your teeth are in, the level of discolouration and the cause of discolouration. Many causes are a result of habitual smoking, drinking of dark-coloured beverages, such as tea or coffee and eating foods that have colourful spices in them. Whatever the cause of your teeth discolouration, there are options that can improve their whiteness – which can increase your confidence ten-fold and keep you smiling bright.

Below are the different whitening techniques that we use, you can discuss with us what is best for you.

Chair session

A chair session takes about an hour, and during this time concentrated whitening material is applied to your teeth. This is ideal if you have an event such as a wedding coming up, or if you know you won’t wear the mouth guard every night.

Veneer

If you have white fillings on your front teeth, or you have discolouration from within – often caused by trauma or dead nerves – you can have a veneer (shell) placed over your tooth’s surface. These can be composite fillings (done in the chair) or ceramic, which are made in the lab. If you have weakened teeth, or heavily stained teeth, crowns can be used, protecting the tooth at the same time.

Internal bleaching

Sometimes if you have had root canal treatment, your teeth can turn black (intrinsic staining). In this case, teeth can be whitened by internal bleaching, where the tooth is opened up, and whitening material is syringed into the tooth. Whitening teeth can last a very long time. If you do not practice good oral hygiene or you eat and drink high colour food and beverages, the chances are high that your teeth will discolour again. Please ask us for more information at your next visit!