What Exactly Is a Teeth Whitening Treatment?

Find Out What’s Going On When Your Teeth Go From Dull To Dazzling!

Today I’m going to walk you through a typical teeth whitening treatment, from scheduling the appointment, to walking out the door with a brand new smile. Afterwards, you’ll feel 100% comfortable with the entire process.

First, you’ll call in and ask to schedule a teeth whitening appointment, but you may want to know how much it will cost first. One of my polite dental assistants will tell you:

“Costs for teeth whitening vary on a case-by-case basis, depending on what type of treatment you decide to go with. Typically, in-office treatments cost $300-$800, and take home kits cost $100-$400. If you come in for a free consultation, we can give you a much better idea of the costs involved with your case.”

“Wow! A free consultation!” you say. As soon as you schedule a consultation you’re already on your way to a brighter smile.

During your free consultation, I will compare your teeth to a shade guide, review your dental history, and determine if you’re a perfect candidate for teeth whitening. With in-office treatment and regular at-home touch ups, we can expect that your teeth will improve by about 3-7 shades. Although this is exciting news you still have one concern: insurance – does it cover teeth whitening?

Since whitening is a cosmetic procedure, generally it is not covered under dental insurance. The good news is that there are payment plans available. During your free consultation, we’ll discuss which plans might be appropriate. There are also third-party financing options such as CareCredit (www.carecredit.com) that you can investigate.

Once we’ve got that all squared away, we’ll take impressions for your take home kit, and set up a time to actually perform the treatment. Later that week, you will come in and have a seat in our comfortable waiting room. A dental assistant will greet you and show you to your chair. You’ll notice that the area is already prepared with a blanket, headphones, and a hot towel for your convenience.

You sit down and enjoy the soothing music, while our staff prepares the area. I will carefully apply the whitening solution (usually hydrogen peroxide) to your teeth, taking special care not to irritate your gums with the potent bleaching agent. We may need to re-apply once or twice, but in about 30-60 minutes you’ll be sitting up to look in the mirror at your brand new smile!

Since we decided to follow-up with a take home kit, I’ll give you the custom fit trays that we created from your impressions, and explain how often you should apply the whitening solution. You are in and out of the office in just over an hour, with new sparkling teeth!

As you can see, the process for teeth whitening is simple and hassle-free. With affordable financing, there is no reason to live with a smile you aren’t proud to show off. Take the first step and schedule your free consultation by clicking here.

Next week we will finish up our discussion of teeth whitening by talking about the safety of bleaching, who is a good candidate for teeth whitening, and what risks are involved.