Whitening Teeth From Within
What is internal bleaching?
Internal bleaching is a conservative treatment for whitening a single, darkened, non-vital tooth when discoloration originates from inside the tooth.
What causes discoloration inside of a tooth?
Common sources of discoloration include bleeding inside the tooth following trauma, breakdown products from a necrotic pulp, residual pulp tissue, and staining from certain materials or medications.
What can I expect during internal bleaching?
After confirming that the tissues surrounding the non-vital tooth are healthy, the endodontist places a protective barrier around the tooth and applies a bleaching agent inside of it. This quick and painless treatment lightens the tooth from within while preserving substantially more natural tooth structure than a veneer or crown. A few days after treatment, the endodontist will remove the bleaching agent and seal the tooth.
Pros and cons of internal bleaching:
Internal bleaching will always lighten a discolored, non-vital tooth but there is no way to know in advance how much lighter that treatment will make any particular tooth. If you want to be sure your discolored tooth will perfectly match your other teeth, you should see your general dentist to get a crown or a veneer in the exact shade of white you want. The advantages of internal bleaching over crowns or veneers are that it is quicker, less expensive, never requires an anesthetic and preserves virtually all of the natural tooth’s structure.
What is internal bleaching?
Despite every effort, blood, bacteria, and saliva have the potential to enter a tooth during a root canal procedure.
As the bacteria and other contaminants break down within the tooth, they also darken. External bleaching won’t fix the problem because the discoloration is happening from the inside out.
So the answer is Internal bleaching, a minor surgical procedure that targets discoloration where it’s occurring in your tooth.
What can I expect during internal bleaching?
During the procedure, the tooth is isolated and cleaned. Then a rubber dam is placed on the tooth to prevent further contamination during the procedure, and discoloration in the future. An anesthetic cream is applied to your gums to ease discomfort.
Any decayed material that’s causing discoloration is removed. A bleaching agent is applied to the space within your tooth. This bleaching agent stays in your tooth for two to three days.
When the desired shade is reached, the bleaching agent is removed, and the tooth gets sealed. Some people may need an additional bleaching procedure if there’s notable discoloration.
This procedure is quite safe, but you may experience a little discomfort and tooth sensitivity following the procedure.
Traditional teeth whitening versus internal bleaching:
Teeth Whitening
Traditional teeth whitening bleaches your teeth from the outside, usually using a hydrogen peroxide solution. It’s effective for teeth that are discolored from food or the effects of aging.
Internal Bleaching
Internal bleaching is different because it whitens from the inside out. It’s reserved for devitalized teeth, or teeth that have had a root canal.
