Can I Deternine the Whiteness of My Teeth?

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,

Teeth Bleaching trays in their case — Teeth Whitening Trays

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.

Mouth Hurts After Full Mouth Reconstruction

I need some help. I went in for a full mouth reconstruction. The temporaries seemed to fit okay. When the lower permanent crowns and bridges were placed, they didn’t meet up well with the upper teeth. In fact, it was causing me some pain. My dentist said that would fix itself after he placed the upper ones. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. I mentioned that to him and he did some adjustments, but nothing that helped. He said the teeth are fine but it is possible that I’m just adjusting to having the reconstruction. To “put my mind at ease” he gave me the names of two other dentists he knows that would give me a second opinion. I went to see both of them. They both said that everything looked fine. They didn’t even mention that I have teeth on one side that don’t meet together. I’m starting to wonder if they were more interesting in protecting their colleague’s reputation than they were in giving me a honest diagnosis. My jaw hurts all the time, and now I’m getting headaches. I don’t know what to do.

Mario

Dear Mario,

Bear in mind that I haven’t examined you, but I can give you some general advice. If your teeth are not meeting together that is a problem that needs to be fixed. The fact that he gave you two names for second opinions before you even asked about a second opinion is a bit sketchy to me. Whenever I advise people who write us about a dental issue and I think they need a second opinion, I advise them to get a blind second opinion. That means they go to a dentist who is an expert on the procedure, but do not tell them what your prognosis was or the dentist that did the work. The dental world is a small world and you don’t want a dentist torn between their diagnosis and loyalty to a friend.

In your case, you want to see someone who is an expert in TMJ disorder. They will have the training to know how teeth should occlude, which is the term for how they come together to meet when you bite down. They will have the expertise to give you the evaluation you need. I would look for someone who received post-doctoral training from the Spear Institute, the Pankey Institute, or the Dawson Academy. There are others, but any of these should be fine.

This blog is brought to you by a friendly dentist in Moline Dr. Thomas Goebel.
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