Laser tooth whitening is a term that refers to accelerated tooth whitening that is done in the office with a power bleaching light.

Several years ago, lasers were actually used to try to accelerate the whitening process. However, it was found that the highly focused light was actually quite a slow process. Since lasers focus on a single spot, the light had to be moved around to cover all the teeth. The slowness was not only self-defeating, but it made the procedure more expensive while diminishing the results.

A shift in thinking occurred, and it was realized that a light that focused on the teeth and shined on all teeth at the same time was the fastest and most efficient. The term laser whitening persisted, even though most offices actually dropped the use of the laser. The Zoom light is the most popular light now used by cosmetic dentists for this procedure.

Here is an illustration of the results obtained with laser tooth whitening. This is a case done in our office, and the tooth shade tabs are used to help document the dramatic whitening that occurred in a single two-hour appointment.

Before laser tooth whitening

Here is the before photo. This patient’s teeth have darkened over the years. Our teeth absorb stains from many sources – coffee, tea, and highly pigmented fruits are just a few things that cause our teeth to darken.

After laser tooth whitening

In a single two-hour appointment, all those stains are gone and this patient’s teeth are now the lightest natural shade, ten shades lighter. Further brightening could be achieved with another appointment.

Before

Here is another case of a patient with nicely shaped but dark teeth.

After

One in-office bleaching appointment brought these dramatic results.

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