laser teeth whitening procedure

[Isabel]

Hi

I am looking to have laser teeth whitening soon and would like to know what is involved in the laser teeth whitening procedure? Are all my teeth whitened and are there any risks associated with the laser teeth whitening procedure?

[Dr Ehsan J. Esfahani]

Hello Isabel

Thank you for your question.

At Pearl Dental Clinic we have zoom advanced power laser teeth whitening. Firstly we would need to see you for a consultation. If your teeth and gums are healthy you can do teeth whitening. The laser teeth whitening procedure is as follows

1) Zoom Lip/cheek retractor is placed and a before laser whitening photo taken
2) Front top/botton 8 teeth are isolated with a resin gum barrier
3) 4 pieces of gauze are placed in the mouth to cover remaining soft tissues
4) Lip UV balm cream is applied
5) Face mask is placed
6) Zoom whitening gel is mixed, prepared and applied to the smile teeth
7) zoom advanced power lamp is placed over the mouth
8) 3 whitening cycles is carried out and whitening gel is changed after each
cycle.
9) All materials are removed and the mouth is rinsed
10) Post zoom whitening photo is taken and after zoom teeth whitening instructions given.

I only whiten the front 8 top and bottom teeth as in my experience this is safe. Most people probably show 8 top and 8 bottom teeth on smiling.

You will be happy to hear that there are no permanent side effects with zoom laser teeth whitening. Common risks are severe temporary sensitivity and gum burning. Sensitivity normally lasts up to 48 hours and can be reduced with pain killers and sensitive toothpaste.

Gum burning can be due to the hydrogen peroxide gel or the ultraviolet lamp. Hydrogen peroxide gum burns in my experience return to normal usually in 1-2 hours. UV lamp burns are more severe and can take weeks to heal. Vitamin E soothing oil and gengigel are used to reduce the healing time of these burns.

In my experience severe burns are very rare and self limiting and should not be a concern for patients as every precaution is taken at Pearl Dental Clinic to prevent these from occurring.