Teeth Whitening in Baltimore MD

No, though mild tooth sensitivity for a day or two afterward is common and normal.

The ADA notes that temporary tooth sensitivity and gum irritation are the most frequently reported effects of whitening teeth. We keep the process comfortable, check in as we go, and talk through anything you feel. If your teeth run sensitive already, tell us at your consultation and we will adjust the approach.

Yes, when a dentist supervises it. Professional whitening gel is applied in a controlled way that protects your gums and leaves tooth enamel intact.

The risk sits with unsupervised products used too often or too aggressively. Our dentists check your oral health first, because whitening over untreated tooth decay or inflamed gums is a genuinely bad idea. Healthy mouth first, brighter smile second.

Most patients hold their results for several months to a couple of years, depending on what they eat, drink, and smoke.

Coffee, tea, red wine, and dark colored beverages put surface stains back the fastest, and so do tobacco products. Touch up treatments keep things looking fresh. We will show you how to maintain your whiter and brighter smile between visits.

No. Only natural teeth respond to whitening. The ADA is clear that tooth colored restorations do not change shade.

That matters if you have crowns or veneers on your front teeth, because whitening everything around them can leave a mismatch. We plan the order of treatment around it, and sometimes that means whitening first and replacing a restoration afterward so the shades sit together properly.

Most patients with healthy teeth and gums make good candidates for whitening.

Extrinsic stains from food, drink, and tobacco respond best. Deeper discoloration from medication or injury sometimes responds less, and we will tell you that honestly rather than take your money and hope. We check for tooth decay and gum issues first and treat those before anything cosmetic begins.

Surface stains build up from what you eat and drink, and the natural aging of tooth enamel does the rest.

Coffee, tea, red wine, and richly colored foods leave extrinsic stains on the outside of the tooth. Tobacco products cause some of the most stubborn stains we see. Some discoloration sits deeper in the tooth, and that kind behaves differently under whitening treatment.

We discuss both during your consultation and help you pick the one that fits your goals and your schedule.

In office whitening gives you noticeable results in one appointment. A dentist supplied take home kit works more gradually in your own home and suits people who prefer to go at their own pace. 

In office whitening produces visible change after one treatment, while take home trays build up over a couple of weeks.

Nobody should promise you an exact shade from a teeth whitening treatment. What we will do is tell you what the procedure can realistically achieve on your teeth before you start, so your expectations and the outcome line up. Badly discolored teeth sometimes need a different conversation entirely.

You can, though the bleaching agents in over the counter products are weaker than what a dental office uses.

Results come slower and tend to be less even, particularly if the trays do not fit your mouth well. The bigger issue is that nobody checks your oral health first. Talk to your dentist before you start anything, even a supermarket kit.

Yes. Dr. Robinson handles adult and cosmetic dentistry while Dr. Spates leads our pediatric care.

That means one Federal Hill office for your cleaning, your child's checkup, and your whitening treatment. Plenty of parents book their own appointment on the same day as their child's.

Purely cosmetic whitening is generally not covered by dental insurance.

We do accept Medicaid through Maryland Healthy Smiles for eligible services, and treatments that improve function as well as appearance sometimes carry partial coverage. Check your specific benefits with us before your appointment and we will give you a straight answer.

A professional cleaning removes surface stains that brushing leaves behind, which alone makes a visible difference for some patients.

Where whitening is not the right answer, we talk through other general and cosmetic dentistry options. Nobody here pushes treatment for the sake of it, so if a cleaning gets you most of the way there, that is what we will tell you.

It depends on tooth development and on what is causing the discoloration, so it calls for an assessment rather than an assumption.

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry discourages full arch cosmetic whitening while teeth are still developing, while recognizing that a single discolored tooth, often following an injury, sits in a different category. Because a pediatric specialist and an adult cosmetic dentist both work out of this office, a younger patient gets looked at properly here instead of being sold a treatment.

Call (443) 681-6455 or book online, and we will find a time that works around your week.

We offer first Saturday of the month appointments for adults, which helps if weekdays are difficult. Your consultation is a conversation about what you want, with no pressure attached.