Bleaching natural teeth without damaging porcelain veneers

April 15, 2010 – 7:22 pm

Are there any over-the-counter whitening products that are safe to use with porcelain veneers? I have six veneers that were placed several years ago. The veneers still look fantastic, but my other teeth have yellowed, and the difference is really noticeable.

Thanks for your advice,

Neil in Bethesda, MD

Dear Neil,

There are only a few teeth whiteningproducts that would be appropriate in this situation. Crest Whitestrips or other products that are similar are the only products I would consider both safe and effective. The active agent in the whitestrips is peroxide, which needs to be left on the teeth to penetrate and whiten them. The strips do a pretty good job, usually.

Whitening toothpastes, which are only on the teeth briefly, really don’t do anything at all. Some whitening products can actually make the problem worse over time. They contain acids that slightly etch the surface of your teeth, which allows the white pigment in the second step of the treatment to adhere to your teeth. Tests indicate that these products actually damage your teeth, and when the pigment wears away, the roughened enamel will pick up even more staining, making your teeth darker than they were before the treatment. If you are going to do this yourself, I would strongly suggest sticking with only the whitestrips type products.

There are, however, several reasons the whitestrips might not work for you. First, they are designed to work on the front six teeth, which are the teeth you have veneers on. You could try trimming them to fit, but you might wind up with strange gaps and uncovered areas. The whitestrips also take quite a while to really show dramatic results, as the peroxide solution that is legal to sell over the counter is so much weaker than  what is used in a dentist’s office. This could mean purchasing quite a few kits, and quite a lot of your time spent messing around with this.

It would almost certainly be worth it to get this procedure done in your dentist’s office. The bleach used in the office will not harm your veneers, and is simple enough that no special training is necessary, so your general dentist could take care of this.