Tooth Whitening

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NinerNiner999

NinerNiner999

Senior Member
15+ Year Member
Hey everyone! I'm curious - what do you use for chairside tooth whitening? I've looked at products such as Zoom! and Opalescence, and they range from 15-25% strength Hydrogen Peroxide, some with flouride. Could this solution be mixed manually using, say, 20cc KY jelly (base), 8cc Hydrogen Peroxide (store bought), and 2cc whitening toothpaste (for flavor) without buying the kits? Any suggestions?
 
NinerNiner999 said:
Hey everyone! I'm curious - what do you use for chairside tooth whitening? I've looked at products such as Zoom! and Opalescence, and they range from 15-25% strength Hydrogen Peroxide, some with flouride. Could this solution be mixed manually using, say, 20cc KY jelly (base), 8cc Hydrogen Peroxide (store bought), and 2cc whitening toothpaste (for flavor) without buying the kits? Any suggestions?
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If you know how to mix it, I wouldn't see why not...but it'd be a lot of hassle. An easier way would be to find a practicing or resident dentist and see if s/he can score you some freebies--I just got a bag full of free whitening stuff at lunch today from a product rep.
 
My goal isn't to get the OTC at home whitening product. I would like to perform chairside tooth whitening at home using dentist strength (25-35% Hydrogen peroxide) gel and cheek retractors. Are your free samples dentist strength (suitable for one 60 minute application)?
 
It looks like you're a med student at john hopkins, so I have a question for you. I broke my arm and noticed that all I need is some plaster of paris and bandages and my arm will heel properly, is this correct?

By believing you can create your own tooth whitening product, you are discounting everything dentists do. There is a reason they don't sell professional strength over the counter b/c it is a semi- controlled substance.
 
toothcaries said:
why waste your time...?

dental students can get free treswhite samples from ultradent.
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Toothcaries,
How do you like treswhite? I haven't tried it yet...
 
toothcaries said:
why waste your time...?

dental students can get free treswhite samples from ultradent.
Click to expand...

As a dental students you can get Opalescence for free and make your own custom trays. Why bother with Treswhite?

To the original poster:even if you mixed your own bleach, you would need a custom tray or professional to apply it. Especially at the percentages you're looking at. Applying 20%+ yourself without a custome tray and you risk burning your gingiva. There is a reason why it's not OTC.
 
Gutta Percha said:
It looks like you're a med student at john hopkins, so I have a question for you. I broke my arm and noticed that all I need is some plaster of paris and bandages and my arm will heel properly, is this correct?
Click to expand...

Obviously no, and I'm a resident. BTW - we use heat activated nylon splints, I'd be happy to educate you if you want. I also assume you mean HEAL, and not the human calcaneous, which I can also show you if you want.


Gutta Percha said:
By believing you can create your own tooth whitening product, you are discounting everything dentists do. There is a reason they don't sell professional strength over the counter b/c it is a semi- controlled substance.
Click to expand...

I do not believe I am discounting anything dentists do, and I'm sorry you feel that way. In what way is hydrogen peroxide (the primary active ingredient) a controlled substance, and in what way would I, as a licensed M.D. be incapable of using it if it was? Oh, and what is a "Semi-controlled" substance?

In answer to DDSslave's post, I have brush on gum latex which I plan to use for a dental dam prior to application.

Do you guys think the proportions in my mixture sound about right?
 
you would need a custom tray or professional to apply it. Especially at the percentages you're looking at. [/QUOTE]

Just out of curiosity, wouldn't you be able to get a mouthguard from a store and fit it to your mouth as a replacement for the custom-fitted tray? If you did that (purely hypothetical) how would you protect the gingiva?
 
Can one even *get* H2O2 that strong OTC? I was under the impression that the typical bottle of H2O2 you buy at the store is like 3%.

Speaking of which, the normal H2O2 you buy at the store usually says on the label "oral debriding agent" or something to that effect -- has anyone of y'all ever swished the stuff around in your mouth, and if so, did your teeth get any whiter as a result? (I know, probably not because of the low percentage) 😀

Does anyone know of a listing of what percentage H2O2 is in OTC whitening products? I can't even find any indication on the box of a lot of them I've looked at. They'll have an ingredients list, but they won't tell you how much of what, so I can't get a feeling of which ones are stronger than others.
 
I was thinking about buying a football mouth guard and molding it to my teeth - should do the trick. Likewise, by applying latex dental dam (paint on) to the gingiva, I should provide adequate protection. Can someone let me know if this is common for dental practice?
 
NinerNiner999 said:
I was thinking about buying a football mouth guard and molding it to my teeth - should do the trick. Likewise, by applying latex dental dam (paint on) to the gingiva, I should provide adequate protection. Can someone let me know if this is common for dental practice?
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Yes the paint on dam is often used for in-office bleaching which uses a very high conc of bleach, say 35%. As you know, that has a very high risk of causing damage if not applied properly. If you're determined to do it, I would suggest a much lower conc. of bleach say 10-15% with a tray. The paint on dam material is really too big a pain to do multiple times and the risks associated with a one time very concentrated bleaching including chemical burns and/or severe pain (pulpal or periodontal) are really not worth it. The problem with store bought trays is they have very poor adaptation to the tooth. A custom tray will pretty much seal off the tooth from soft tissue allowing you to use a much higher concentration of bleach. But if you're going to do this no matter what, use the best tray you can get your hands on and start off with a low conc (10%) bleach for 30 intervals and step up from there.
 
BTW, I'm impressed you have access to liquid rubber dam and a curing light but not alginate, impression tray, stone, and a bleaching tray sheet. It seems like you have some connections to dentistry, why not find a friend to make you trays, it's quite easy.
 
NinerNiner999 said:
I was thinking about buying a football mouth guard and molding it to my teeth - should do the trick. Likewise, by applying latex dental dam (paint on) to the gingiva, I should provide adequate protection. Can someone let me know if this is common for dental practice?
Click to expand...


If you work at the hospital, become buddy buddy with someone from anesthesia. They have all types of mouthguards 😀
 
DDSSlave said:
BTW, I'm impressed you have access to liquid rubber dam and a curing light but not alginate, impression tray, stone, and a bleaching tray sheet. It seems like you have some connections to dentistry, why not find a friend to make you trays, it's quite easy.
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This is kinda what I've been thinking.
 
I've asked this question once, but no one replied, probably thinking that I was advertising something to sell 🙂 ...

Now, let me paraphrase it... there is a seller on ebay selling custom made trays with Opalescence PF 15% for around $50. Do you think I should try this? I would be happy to provide more details but don't wanna sound like I'm doing this guy a favour 😀
 
DDS2BE said:
I've asked this question once, but no one replied, probably thinking that I was advertising something to sell 🙂 ...

Now, let me paraphrase it... there is a seller on ebay selling custom made trays with Opalescence PF 15% for around $50. Do you think I should try this? I would be happy to provide more details but don't wanna sound like I'm doing this guy a favour 😀
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They're not custom trays.
 
He sends the materials to make an imprint that needs to be sent back to him. Then he ships the "custom made" tray back along with the whitening gel.
 
I smoked for years, since I was a kid, and my teeth were terribly stained. The best I could get with the trays, pastes and all that junk was a little bit whiter, but nothing that would leave me comfortable enough to smile in public.
Thing that worked best for me was this "Cold Laser" treatment that my dentist said he wanted to try after seeing it on USA today. It's worth a shot, and it definitely tastes a lot better, lol!
 
NinerNiner999 said:
Obviously no, and I'm a resident. BTW - we use heat activated nylon splints, I'd be happy to educate you if you want. I also assume you mean HEAL, and not the human calcaneous, which I can also show you if you want.




I do not believe I am discounting anything dentists do, and I'm sorry you feel that way. In what way is hydrogen peroxide (the primary active ingredient) a controlled substance, and in what way would I, as a licensed M.D. be incapable of using it if it was? Oh, and what is a "Semi-controlled" substance?

In answer to DDSslave's post, I have brush on gum latex which I plan to use for a dental dam prior to application.

Do you guys think the proportions in my mixture sound about right?
Click to expand...


Pod student here. Just got a laugh that you spelled calcaneus wrong.
 
Go to the library, and borrow Phillips' Science of Dental Materials.

Look up the section termed: impression materials, get some plaster or dental stone and fabricate.

I'd love to see you apply the alginate. Always good for laughs.
 
NinerNiner999 said:
Obviously no, and I'm a resident. BTW - we use heat activated nylon splints, I'd be happy to educate you if you want. I also assume you mean HEAL, and not the human calcaneous, which I can also show you if you want.




I do not believe I am discounting anything dentists do, and I'm sorry you feel that way. In what way is hydrogen peroxide (the primary active ingredient) a controlled substance, and in what way would I, as a licensed M.D. be incapable of using it if it was? Oh, and what is a "Semi-controlled" substance?

In answer to DDSslave's post, I have brush on gum latex which I plan to use for a dental dam prior to application.

Do you guys think the proportions in my mixture sound about right?
Click to expand...

So does that mean I can do a coronary bypass if i can find an internal thoracic artery, saphenous vein or radial artery?

After all, it's not technique sensitive at all right? 😉
 
Assistants do impressions, I am sure that you could figure it out.
 
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