Teeth whitening and veneers are the fastest and easiest ways to enhance the look of your smile.
If you have good overall oral health but are concerned about one or more cosmetic issues, such as stained teeth or slightly crooked teeth, cosmetic dentistry options like professional teeth whitening or veneers can work by themselves or together to make dramatic improvements to the appearance of your teeth.
What Can Teeth Whitening Do?
Professional teeth whitening can brighten your smile up to eight shades with one short visit to your dentist. At this appointment, the dentist will apply a specially formulated, hydrogen peroxide-based gel onto your teeth and leave it for as long as directed (15 minutes with ZOOM!).
When using the ZOOM! Method, the bleaching gel will be exposed to an activating lamp, which allows the peroxide to fully penetrate the teeth. This process is repeated three times to achieve maximum results, after which you leave the office with a significantly brighter smile.
Teeth whitening works best for stains that have occurred over time due to the consumption of red wine, coffee, tea, and other highly-pigmented foods and beverages.
Dental prosthetics like crowns, bridges, and veneers cannot be whitened.
What Can Porcelain Veneers Do?
Porcelain veneers are ultra-thin shell-like prosthetics that fit over natural teeth to address several dental issues, including:
- Teeth with intrinsic discoloration caused by medications, illness, or genetics
- Teeth that are misshapen or worn down
- Teeth that are chipped or cracked
- Teeth that are uneven or slightly misaligned
- Teeth with small gaps
Porcelain veneers can turn your damaged teeth into a stunning smile, and the procedure only takes two visits. First, an impression of your teeth may be obtained for reference, then the teeth that will receive the veneers are prepared. Your dentist removes a small portion of each tooth and then obtains the final impression for the lab to use in the creation of your veneers.
When you return for your second visit (in about two weeks), the dentist will attach the veneers to your teeth, and you will leave the office with a perfect smile!
Combining Teeth Whitening and Porcelain Veneers
If you have both dental staining and structurally damaged teeth, you may be able to receive the teeth whitening treatment first to treat the staining on your natural teeth and then color match the new veneers to that shade.
This approach is the most cost-effective way to treat a smile with extrinsic discoloration and other cosmetic flaws.
Finding the Right Cosmetic Dentist
Before receiving cosmetic treatments like whitening or veneers, it’s important that your teeth are otherwise healthy.
If you have a healthy but cosmetically imperfect smile but want a cosmetic dentistry specialist in Beverly Hills, call the office of Dr. Kevin Sands today at 310-273-0111. Your perfect smile is waiting!