Teeth whitening can be performed at home using techniques such as oil-pulling, home remedies or commercial products. The most effective and significant results, however, come with professional teeth whitening that is also called in-office teeth whitening. In Iran, the increasing demand for Hollywood smile has led to rapid developments in cosmetic dentistry. National and international patients can now benefit from the wide experience of highly-skilled Iranian specialists and fully-equipped clinics at decent prices. Let’s have a look at the teeth whitening procedure and why getting a Hollywood smile with teeth whitening in Iran can offer an experience you won’t forget.

How is teeth whitening performed?

The teeth whitening technique will take about an hour. To perform the procedure, the dentist uses a bleaching agent and a certain light energy that helps the bleaching gel to penetrate the enamel and whiten the teeth from within. As the technique removes any stains that exist on the outside of the tooth (extrinsic discoloration) as well as those beneath the enamel, it offers considerably whiter results immediately after the procedure.

The bleaching agent can be either the hydrogen peroxide itself or carbamide peroxide which will be broken down to form hydrogen peroxide. The teeth whitening gel used by a professional dental hygienist contains 3% to 16% of hydrogen peroxide. This percentage is only allowed to be used by a professional. The take-home kits or teeth whitening trays contain less hydrogen peroxide and are often given to the patient to prolong teeth whiteness.

The dentist uses light to accelerate the bleaching process and increase the effectiveness of the whitening agent. There are different types of power or light that can be used during bleaching. One of the most recent light beams used for teeth whitening is Phillips Zoom light. This source of energy can sufficiently activate the whitening gel without damaging the soft tissue or resulting in tooth sensitivity. In Iran, zoom light is used by the majority of cosmetic dentists because of its effectiveness and minimal risk of tooth sensitivity after the process.

It is important to note that the teeth whitening procedure is effective for people with good oral health and permanent teeth. People with dental crowns cannot achieve the same result on their crowned teeth.

Teeth whitening methods

There are multiple methods that can be used to whiten teeth. The type of teeth whitening technique will be chosen based on the degree of discoloration, your budget, age, and current dental condition. This is why examining patients before the procedure is highly important. Here are some of the main approaches that a dentist can take to whiten your teeth:

• Light-assisted teeth whitening:

This is the most common type of teeth whitening. The dentist applies bleaching agent on your teeth and then emits a certain energy light to activate the substance.

• In-chair teeth whitening:

This technique is performed using high concentrations of hydrogen peroxide without applying light. The method is suitable for those with excessive tooth hypersensitivity. Dentists rarely perform the procedure as it will take more than two hours for the whitening agent to activate and remove the discoloration.

• Internal teeth whitening:

Patients who have undergone an endodontics procedure, often face tooth discoloration due to the absence of nerve inside the tooth. A tooth that has had a root canal tends to be darker and duller than the rest of your teeth. Also called a dead tooth, a root canal tooth cannot be whitened at the same rate that a healthy tooth can. To brighten the color of a dead tooth, dentists use internal bleaching technique. During this method, the bleaching agent is sealed off inside the tooth. It will be removed every few weeks until the desired whiteness is achieved.