Tag Archives: White spots after braces

Zoom Whitening

Zoom Whitening After Spots from Braces?

My daughter had gotten her braces off several weeks ago and there were white spots on her teeth. Our orthodontist told me to see our dentist who would know how to fix the white spots. Our dentist suggested we whiten her teeth. Because we were in such a hurry to get her teeth looking normal and attractive, she suggested Zoom Whitening, which is a new procedure she had started doing. We did it but it made the spots a lot worse. Did she do something wrong? She did tell me we’d be one of the first patients to use the procedure.

Kelly

Dear Kelly,

A patient under a Zoom Whitening Light
Zoom Whitening

I am sorry your daughter has been getting such poor care. I think your dentist is well intentioned but doesn’t understand the principles of teeth whitening very well.

When teeth are whitened, they are whitened uniformly. That means the white spots will get whiter along with the remainder of your daughter’s teeth. Zoom whitening is very effective, which meant it just whitened the teeth uniformly faster.

The Cause of White Spots on Teeth

When there are white spots on teeth after braces, it is because of decalcification. This happens when the teeth are not adequately cleaned during the time they are wearing braces. It can be hard to get around all those metal wires and brackets.

There is a tooth mousse that could help with the decalcification, however it does not usually help with the esthetics. One way that will deal with both issues is dental bonding.

However, dental bonding is a very advanced cosmetic dental procedure. As your dentist did not have a grasp of the principles of teeth whitening, which is the simplest cosmetic procedure, she will not be able to do the dental bonding well.

My suggestion is that you take your daughter to an expert cosmetic dentist to have the dental bonding done.

This blog is brought to you by Lafayette, LA Dentists Drs. Foreman and Thimmesch.

Zoom Whitening

Zoom Whitening & White Spots

When my daughter’s braces were finally removed, she ended up with white spots on her teeth. Her orthodontist said her dentist could help us with that. The dentist recommended Zoom Whitening to even the teeth up, but for some reason, they now look worse than ever instead. Did something go wrong? Where do we go from here?

Amanda

Dear Amanda,

Zoom Whitening Logo

While Zoom Whitening is an amazing and powerful teeth whitening system, your dentist doesn’t understand teeth whitening principles. When your teeth are whitened, they whiten evenly. That means the white spots they had will still be different from the remainder of her teeth. The difference between Zoom and take-home whitening systems is that Zoom is faster, whitening her teeth in just one appointment, rather than over several weeks.

When there are white spots after braces, it is generally a sign of decalcification. It’s difficult to brush efficiently with all those metal wires and brackets on her teeth. That’s one reason we often recommend Invisalign for teens and adults. Because these use aligners, you can simply remove them to brush and floss and then put them back on.

As for the decalcification, you do want to address that before it turns into actual decay. There is a product on the market called Tooth Mousse which is specifically designed to recalcify teeth.

Another option is to have the decalcified spots gently removed and then have composite bonding placed on top to match the remainder of the tooth.

One caveat here. Your current dentist likely isn’t qualified to do the dental bonding. Teeth whitening principles are quite basic and she missed the boat with that. Bonding is more advanced and takes some post-doctoral cosmetic dentistry training.

Best of luck to you and your daughter!

This blog is brought to you by Lafayette, LA Dentists Drs. Foreman and Thimmesch.