Contents
In line with its mission, the Editorial Board of MedTvoiLokony makes every effort to provide reliable medical content supported by the latest scientific knowledge. The additional flag “Checked Content” indicates that the article has been reviewed by or written directly by a physician. This two-step verification: a medical journalist and a doctor allows us to provide the highest quality content in line with current medical knowledge.
Our commitment in this area has been appreciated, among others, by by the Association of Journalists for Health, which awarded the Editorial Board of MedTvoiLokony with the honorary title of the Great Educator.
Fills are fillings used to secure cavities in teeth. Almost every person who visits the dentist regularly will sooner or later have to decide on the filling. In the case of teeth whitening, the fillings may be a minor obstacle. Although they do not stand in the way of whitening, they themselves will not change color during the procedure. Can anything be done about it?
Are the fillings a contraindication to whitening?
The treatment of teeth is one of the basic recommendations before the whitening procedure. Careful and tight fillings that protect against irritation and minimize hypersensitivity are extremely important. It follows that the seals are not a contraindication to whitening, but must be of good quality. This is especially important in the case of whitening dead teeth, i.e. those treated with a root canal. It happens that a second root canal treatment is necessary. You can then thoroughly clean the canal from dead tissue and apply tight seals.
Even if the person planning to whiten has multiple fillings, they may give up teeth whitening treatment. The most important thing is that the teeth are healthy. The main issue is to heal even the smallest cavities, as they can cause severe pain during whitening. This is because the whitening substances are irritating and therefore cannot come into contact with the pulp inside the tooth or with the gums.
Is it possible to whiten the seal?
The whitening treatment – regardless of the method – is effective only within the tooth tissue. There is no way to whiten the seals home remedies or whitening treatments offered by dental offices. The active substance in whitening preparations is most often hydrogen peroxide, sometimes also carbamide peroxide, sodium perborate or sodium percarbonate. These chemical compounds only act on the tooth’s tissues, but do not react with the materials used to create the fillings. They also won’t whiten dead teeth after root canal treatment.
The inability to lighten the fillings means that after the whitening treatment they will be clearly darker than healthy teeth. Such an effect may be aesthetically undesirable. The way to avoid it is to replace the seals with lighter ones.
See how to whiten your teeth:
- laser method;
- overlay method;
- veneers;
- after root canal treatment.
Teeth whitening and replacement of fillings
If the cavity fillings are new, small or in inconspicuous places, they will not need to be replaced. However, when there are large fillings in the dentition, it is usually recommended to replace them with one that matches the shade of the whitened teeth. The situation is similar in the case of crowns or bridges, which may turn out darker than teeth after whitening.
We will achieve a satisfactory result by replacing the old fillings with lighter ones after the teeth are lightened. Usually, you have to wait until the post-operative sensitivity disappears and the color of the teeth stabilizes. Then it adapts shade of the seal to the resulting whiteness of the teeth. A dazzling smile will stay with us for longer if we take care of oral hygiene and be careful with food products with coloring properties, including coffee and tea.
To improve the color of the teeth, we recommend Perlax whitening and antibacterial toothpaste. After washing them, it is worth applying ApaCare Repair Tooth Remineralization Gel 1-2 times a day.