Can I Deternine the Whiteness of My Teeth?
Posted by writeradmin
Is it possible to determine the exact color that I whiten my teeth to? I am hoping to get my teeth the same color as my eyeballs. Don’t laugh. Is that even a possibility or am I being unrealistic?
Edith
Dear Edith,
First, I would never laugh at a patient’s request or questions. Funny jokes, sure, but never genuine inquiries. Second, let me congratulate you on posting one of the most unique questions that I have had in a while. The answer to your question has two parts.
Part one depends on how white your eyeballs actually are. There are limits to how white tooth bleaching can get teeth. Though, they can get them stunningly white.
Part two has more to do with getting an exact match. That can be a bit tricky with teeth whitening. The reason for this is that even after you stop whitening, the gel will continue to whiten your teeth for one to two weeks.
If an EXACT match is what you’re after, then the best way to achieve that is with porcelain veneers. A skilled cosmetic dentist can match your veneers to pretty much any color that you want.
This is why when a patient is getting a complete smile makeover with porcelain veneers, but the patient can’t afford enough porcelain veneers to cover every tooth that is visible when you smile, we recommend they get their teeth whitened first. This way the veneers can be matched to their new whiter teeth.
If you go the porcelain veneers route, it’s important that you make sure your dentist has post doctoral training in cosmetic dentistry. You will also want to check out their smile gallery to make sure they can create beautiful results. If you do not love what you see in their smile gallery, you will not like the results you get. If they do not have a smile gallery, that tells me that they either do not do enough cosmetic work to provide a gallery or their results aren’t that great and they don’t want to display them.
You’ll also want to make sure that they are willing to try them in with a temporary try-in paste. They way you get to see them on your smile and if you aren’t thrilled with the results, then they should be willing to send them back to the lab and make the changes which you want.
This blog is brought to you by a metal-free dentist in Moline Dr. Thomas Goebel.