Change your smile

Discoloured, yellow-gray teeth make us smile a lot less than we should, and – as you know – laughter is the best medicine. Fortunately, there is an effective remedy.

We offer our patients professional laser or mouthpiece teeth whitening. How does the treatment look like?

Teeth whitening

Laser whitening:

• The first visit: deposits are professionally removed from the teeth by a dentist, a protecting gel is applied to the gums and hardened with a UV light. Then teeth whitening preparation is applied and exposed to light for 15 minutes; for best results the cycle is repeated 3-4 times. The slogan “snow-white teeth in an hour” is very much appropriate here.

Mouthpiece tray whitening:

• The first visit: after an initial examination and scaling ends, a dentist takes impressions with the stock impression trays.
• The second visit: a dentist gives the patient a mouthpiece tray prepared by a technician and a syringe with a whitening gel; the tray should be worn overnight for 3-4 consecutive nights.

Teeth sandblasting

Sandblast cleaning is one of the simplest treatments in aesthetic dentistry. It allows our teeth to restore their previous whiter shade and shine. How does teeth sandblasting look like? Here is a simplified scheme:

• The first visit: after scaling, a dentist cleans teeth surfaces with a stream of sand mixed with water; the used sand is aspirated from the mouth with a surgical aspirator. The treatment takes about 15-20 minutes depending on the amount of deposits on the teeth surfaces.

Porcelain veneers

Porcelain veneers are the great tool of the aesthetic dentistry. They are fixed prosthetic restorations applied to cover the unaesthetic outer surface of the upper and lower teeth.

They are made entirely from porcelain – without a metal base – so they provide wonderful aesthetics and can change every smile. A great advantage of porcelain veneers is that they do not require so much teeth grinding as dental crowns – it means they are safer to the teeth tissue. The thickness of porcelain veneers varies from 0.4 to 0.8 mm so the hard dental tissue is minimally affected. 

How does the treatment look like? Here is a simplified scheme:

• The first visit: after qualifying the patient to a dental treatment, a dentist grinds the teeth planned for veneers placement and takes impressions using a putty.
• The second visit: the dentist does the try-in of porcelain veneers prepared before, makes necessary corrections and starts to cement them in the mouth of a patient.

Removal of teeth discolouration

Nothing is more welcomed by people around us than our wide and honest smile. Unfortunately, not all of us can smile this way. Discoloured teeth make us smile less wide and less often. Fortunately, there is an effective remedy. We offer professional teeth discolouration removal which restores their natural look. Teeth discolouration may be of intrinsic (caused by internal factors) or extrinsic (caused by external factors) character.

How does the treatment look like? Here is a simplified scheme:

Intrinsic discolouration:

• The first visit: such discolourations usually result from taking medicines or a root canal treatment complication. To whiten a non-vital tooth a dentist applies a bleaching insert into the tooth chamber and leaves it there for 3-5 days. This procedure is repeated 2-3 times, then a filling is placed. The whitening effect is permanent and the whitening does not require to be repeated. This method is used to whiten single discoloured teeth.

Extrinsic discolouration:

• The first visit: usually such discolourations and deposits are the result of tobacco smoking, or coffee and tea consumption. To remove them we suggest sandblasting and whitening. Ultrasound scaling of tartar is also often required.

Glossary of terms

Tartar (calculus dentalis)  is a mineralised layer of dental plaque. Tartar may be formed over or under the gum line, and it may irritate the gums. Tartar is a good retentive factor for bacterial biofilm, and its layer is much more sticky which may cause more serious problems, including cavities and gum diseases. Tartar does not only cause danger for the teeth and gums but is also an aesthetic problem. It is characterised by higher porosity so it can be easily covered with stains. People who drink a lot of coffee or tea, or smoke tobacco, should pay special attention to tartar prophylaxis. Tartar is much harder than dental plaque, therefore it can’t be removed with such standard oral hygiene tools like a toothbrush or dental floss. Tartar removal may be done by sandblasting or by piezoelectric or magnetostrictive ultrasonic scaling.

How does tartar look like?

Tartar is usually yellowish, but sometimes gets discoloured with the dyes contained in food (tea, red wine) or as a result of tobacco smoking. It is hard and adheres tightly to the teeth; its surface is rough and uneven. Tartar deposits may be present on individual teeth surfaces, around the teeth or – less often – on all the teeth.

Sandblasting – aesthetic procedure of removing discolourations, deposits, and tartar (tooth scaling) with pressurised water mixed with cleaning particles (sodium bicarbonate) and other chemicals (including air bubbles). Because scaling is not a therapeutic procedure it can be performed not only by a dentist but even by a dental hygienist. The procedure includes thorough cleaning of each visible surface of subsequent teeth. A patient has to spit out a characteristic salty suspension quite often; to eliminate the problem to some extent an aspirator can be used. The procedure is virtually painless although the patient may feel temporary discomfort as they need to keep their mouth open for a prolonged time (up to 20 minutes); salty taste of the liquid and pressure directed not only towards the teeth but also to the gums and the patient’s tongue may also be inconvenient. Recently, sandblasting has also been used to treat caries. A stream of particles and pressurised air removes diseased tooth tissue, leaving the healthy tissues intact. The method is painless and may replace traditional drilling. It should be remembered that the sandblasting effect lasts longer when we care about our oral hygiene. Because of the sandblasting agent composition we do not clean the teeth in asthmatic patients and in patients with low sodium diet. Caution: tobacco smoking, or drinking coffee and tea is prohibited 3 hours after the procedure. The teeth are deprived of the layer protecting them from discolourations, and proteins in saliva require 3 hours to restore this layer.

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