gum irritation with opalescence whitening

[marshall]

Hi everyone,

I'm using the Opalescence 20% PF with KNO3 whitening. I put the stuff in last night and let it work for like 4-5 hours (sleep is for the weak). I had significant sensitivity. If I tough it out is there any damage being done (meaning, is the sensitivity alerting my nimble brain that something is wrong)? I know whitening products are safe, etc but is the sensitivity hurting anything?

Secondly, I think I got some gel on my gums and it was there all night. The gums proceeded to get really ugly (black/purple w/ slight bleeding). I had perfect gums before that and it was really only near the interproximal margins. It worried me a bit... should I be? I looked on the ultradent website and they show a picture of some tainted gums but mine look a bit worse than that. I'm leaving town while I'm supposed to finish the treatment but I wonder if I should discontinue if the gums get worse (duh, is that a stupid question)? I'm eternally paranoid about gums receding and giving me increased sensitivity or root exposure.

Cheers,
Marshall

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[DrJeff]

These are both very common (and harmless) side effects. Skip a couple of days before you use the rest of the bleach and you'll be fine.

 

[bigdental]

Same happened to me. Try doing only 30-60 min intervals a day or less if too sensitive. Whitens the teeth pretty good.