Opalescence Go® 6% : Pre-loaded teeth guards for whitening vital teeth
(Article written by Dr. Bruno PELISSIER)
Dental dyschromia is a pathology frequently encountered in daily dental practice.
After a necessary and very important consultation at the dental surgery, for many dyschromias whitening can be addressed with techniques which are differentiated according to the nature and intensity of the stain and the number of teeth affected.
The active principle and action of whitening is always the same regardless of the techniques, whether the product contains hydrogen peroxide, carbamide peroxide or sodium perborate, but the latter is currently prohibited: released hydrogen peroxide allows teeth to be discoloured by oxidizing the dark molecules contained inside by dissociating them to obtain lighter and smaller molecules.
Following the regulation limiting the concentration of hydrogen peroxide to 6%, the chair technique using highly concentrated products (up to 40%) has practically disappeared. The outpatient technique using weakly concentrated products requiring the use of teeth guards made after an impression – which the patient must wear for a longer or shorter period of time, during the day or at night according to the concentration of product used – has therefore become the most commonly used method for whitening teeth. In the case of home whitening, carbamide peroxide is generally used because it slowly diffuses a lower percentage of peroxide (3 times less). The gel is applied by means of an individual teeth guard. For carbamide peroxide gels with a concentration of 10%, it is recommended to wear the guard at night for 2 to 3 weeks, while for gels with a concentration of 16%, wearing it during the day for 2 to 3 hours for 10 days is recommended. Hydrogen peroxide gels with a concentration of 6% should be worn during the day for shorter periods (1h to 1h30) as they decompose faster.
Another technique with a pre-moulded, filled and disposable teeth guard has been proposed by ULTRADENT since 2013 by adapting its concentrations to regulations. This teeth guard is immediately given to the patient without taking impressions.The flexible inner teeth guard currently contains 6% hydrogen peroxide gel as well as a protective gel barrier on the sides and a PF formulation (potassium nitrate and fluoride). Due to its consistency, this gel remains in good contact with the teeth (more than 20% water, so no dehydration). The whitening kit comes in the form of a box containing 10 days of treatment; correct, fast and effective results are obtained within 10 days.
DISCOVER MORE ABOUT ULTRADENT SOLUTIONS FOR DENTAL DYSCHROMIA BY READING THE FULL ARTICLE.