A great fitting tooth whitening tray is very important in creating a white beautiful smile. The best is professionally made by a cosmetic dentist. You can't bleach teeth coated with calculus so a professional cleaning is done to remove the food debri and calculus. Alginate impressions are taken of the patient's teeth after the cleaning and accurate models constructed from the impressions.

          The tooth whitening tray is made using these accurate plaster models. Most methods used involve a thermoplastic material. Thermo means heat and plastic mean moldable. The thermoplastic material is sucked down onto the patient's model after being softened with heat. This suck down method gives a very well fitting plastic cover that closely adapts to the teeth.

         Each evening before going to bed, the patient places a small amount of bleaching gel in the tooth whitening tray and inserts it into the mouth. It generally takes about a week to achieve good results but if desired, the process can be repeated in a few weeks or a stronger gel can be used. A very nice feature is that if a patient wishes to re-whiten a year or two later, the same covers can be used with new gel. This really reduces the overall long term costs.

         If sensitivity develops, fortunately, the tooth whitening tray can be used as a desensitizing appliance. Instead of the bleaching gel, a prescription fluoride like PerioMed is placed into the covers. After a week or so of wear and after the teeth are less sensitive, the bleaching procedure can be begun again. The area of the tray that covers exposed roots can be cut away so that the whitening gel doesn't contact these sensitive spots. If you are interested a white beautiful smile, why not consider visiting our office? To schedule your cosmetic consultation with Dr. Padolsky call 404-874-7428.