I am 28 and have had stained teeth for as long as I can remember. It was caused by tetracycline, which is used as an alternative to other antimicrobial drugs such as penicillin. Unfortunately, extended use of tetracycline, particularly in expectant mothers or children under the age of six (which was my case), may cause permanent discoloration of the teeth. Characteristically, tetracycline stain presents as intense yellow, gray or brown bands, often causing long term psychological embarrassment through childhood, teenage and adult life. I have tried many different methods to “whiten” my teeth to no avail. No whitening system sold on store shelves has worked. I am tired of wasting my money on products that just don’t cut it. I was wondering if there was something that could get rid of these stains that I may not have tried. Any help would be greatly appreciated by anyone who may have experienced this similiar problem and corrected it.
Not smiling much in Texas,
According to Kugel G, Aboushala A, Zhou X, Gerlach RW of the Tufts University School of Dental Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, twice daily use of 6.5% hydrogen peroxide tooth-whitening gel strips works (Compend Contin Educ Dent 2002 Jan;23(1A):29-34.)
According to Fiedler RS, Reichl RB, combining in-office and at-home nightguard vital bleaching on tetracycline-stained teeth eliminated completely Grade 1 and Grade 2 tetracycline stains in two months. Grade 3 stains, the most severe, were lightened significantly with a reduction in the banding effect (Combined professional and home care nightguard bleaching of tetracycline-stained teeth. Gen Dent 2000 May-Jun;48(3):257-61)
There is a lot more research on this topic. Why don’t you ask someone who knows, like a dentist. (N.b. I’ve never seen any evidence of a dentist posting a response to a question on this board.)
I’ve tried many dentists and most all those whitening strips. Most dentists pretty much want to “experiment” and see what they can do. Sorry, but i’m not a guneia pig and don’t have money I can spend on “might works.”
If the stains are deep inside the tooth, I don’t think there is any kind of bleaching that will help much. I had mine bonded about 15 years ago, which looks good until you pass the 12 year mark, when the bonding starts to chip away around the edges.
So for three years I have been wondering if I need to get re-bonded or go for the more permenant porcelain laminates, at a cost of 650 out-of-pocket dollars per tooth :eek:
My wife had stains from her mother’s taking tetracycline when she was pregnant. Her dentist used a whitening system on her teeth that did an excellent job. But it’s kind of inconvenient. You get custom molds made for your teeth, then squirt this paste in and keep in on your teeth for something like 1/2 or so every day for a couple of weeks. The improvement is remarkable but then you have to go back and do a refresher every few months.
I’m surprised out of “many” dentists that not one has described concrete experience with bleaching tetracycline stains.
I have those same stains and believe me, I know how you feel. I had one dentist in childhood experiment with hydrogen peroxide. Didn’t work.
Got the same custom mold/bleaching kit that cookingwithgas mentioned. It helped some, but the stains are still there. Current dentist doesn’t really think much else will work, for cheap.
I’m also thinking about porcelain veneers, bonding, etc. Once you’re finished experimenting with bleaching, the alternatives start getting pretty pricey. I just assume that it bothers me more than most people notice it, so I just try not to be self-conscious about it.
Bottom line: There’s not a hell of a lot you can do about it, unless you’re willing to spend a lot of money. Even if you have a good dental plan, most won’t cover this sort of cosmetic thing anyway.
I had brown fluoride stains on my teeth. When I was old enough to be able to tell a dentist what I wanted done, I had them bleached. He used hydrocloric acid. They put a rubber sheet over your teeth to protect the rest of you. It took less than an hour and cost $30 (in 1970 dollars). I would have been a happy kid if my parents had gotten it done as soon as my permanent teeth came in.
I don’t know if HCl would work on tetracycline stains, but it might.
through childhood, teenage and adult life. I have tried many different methods to “whiten” my teeth to no avail. No whitening system sold on store shelves has worked. I am tired of wasting my money on products that just don’t cut it. I was wondering if there was something that could get rid of these stains that I may not have tried. Any help would be greatly appreciated by anyone who may have experienced this similiar problem and corrected it.