When teeth become stained over time, their appearance can have a significant effect on your self-confidence. That effect is even more prominent when you take pride in caring for your smile. Fortunately, teeth-whitening can often help you easily and conveniently erase most common teeth stains, allowing you to once again take pride in your smile. However, in some cases, tooth discoloration may not result from common causes, and therefore, they may not respond to professional teeth-whitening. At our Virginia Beach, VA, dental office, we offer professional teeth-whitening and many other customized treatments to help you successfully brighten and improve your smile.
Why wouldn’t teeth-whitening work?
Teeth-whitening is a topical cosmetic treatment that’s designed to eradicate the stains that develop on your teeth’s surfaces. The surface of a tooth, known as its enamel, is highly mineralized and resilient, and teeth-whitening can break up the stains that develop on it gently but effectively enough to restore your teeth’s youthful appearance. Yet, some stains develop underneath a tooth’s semi-translucent tooth enamel. Though they may seem to be on the tooth, the discoloration can’t be reached by the bleaching solution used in professional teeth-whitening treatment.
Your other cosmetic dentistry options
The first step to recommending any treatment is to thoroughly examine your teeth and diagnose the cause of their stains/discoloration. If the exam reveals that your teeth are discolored underneath the enamel, then we can work with you to determine the best treatment option. For instance, if a single tooth is discolored, then cosmetic tooth bonding may be placed onto the discolored area to conceal it. A veneer may be more appropriate if the staining covers much of the tooth’s front structure, or a crown to completely cover a tooth that’s entirely discolored.
If the problem is more than cosmetic
If the problem with your tooth/teeth’s appearance is more than just a cosmetic issue, then your most appropriate treatment may be more restorative in nature. For example, a tooth that is discolored because of a cavity will have to have the tooth decay removed first Using a tooth-colored composite resin filling, we can restore the tooth by filling the cavity while also retaining or improving the tooth’s structural integrity.
Find the best way to brighten your smile
If the stains or discoloration on your teeth won’t respond to teeth-whitening, then we can custom-design a more appropriate cosmetic or restorative procedure to improve your smile. To learn more, schedule a consultation by calling the Absolute Dental Care office in Virginia Beach, VA, today at (757) 428-7440. We proudly welcome patients from Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Norfolk, Suffolk, Hampton, Eastern Shore, and all surrounding communities.
