With the latest advancements in professional teeth whitening there are a variety of options available. The most common procedures used by dentists include the following:
- BriteSmile (gas plasma light/light emitting diode)
- LaserSmile (a Biolase laser)
- LumaArch (halogen light)
- Rembrandt Sapphire (plasma arc light)
- Zoom! (metal halide light)
In regards to professional whitening one of the most common questions asked by readers of yourwhiteningteeth.com is “what is the visit to the dentist like when getting professional whitening?”
Chances are your visit to the dentist for professional whitening will be very similar no matter which of the above procedures you choose.
The first step most dentists utilize is comparing your tooth shade with a tooth shade guide. Stains on your teeth or tarter will be removed before evaluating your tooth shade.
This step is important for the dentist because he or she needs to document a pre-treatment and post-treatment shade for your teeth. This helps the dentist to measure the success of the teeth whitening treatment applied.
Some dentists take this first step a bit further by taking shaded tooth-shaped porcelain tabs and comparing them to your teeth and each match is documented. From time to time some dentists will even take pictures of your teeth before and after the treatment.
The second step in professional whitening is for the dentist to isolate the teeth being whitened. Since peroxide-based bleaching agents can irritate or even damage delicate tissues within and inside of your mouth, your dentist will protect these tissues with dam barriers.
In the last step, the dentist begins the teeth whitening process with laser whitening. During whitening you will be wearing a bib to protect your skin against the peroxide-based bleaching agents. You will also wear eye protection to ensure the peroxide-based bleaching agents and lasers lights will not irritate your eyes.
All in all the laser teeth whitening process is pretty easy going for you, and at most you will be at the dentist for about 2 hours.
