Professional teeth whitening systems: Is a bleaching light really necessary? / What kind of whiteners are used?
Every professional whitening system uses its own specific whitener. And many of these whiteners are stated by their manufacturer to require the use of the system's special bleaching light.
This page describes the characteristics (and gives examples) of the whiteners and bleaching lights that are used with professional systems. It also discusses the issue of whitener light "activation," and how this step may not really be necessary.
What type of whiteners are used with in-office whitening systems?
The active ingredient in whiteners is usually hydrogen peroxide.
Dentists usually purchase in-office whitening products as part of a system or kit. The precise composition of each system's whitener will vary but usually these products typically contain hydrogen peroxide at a concentration between 15 and 50%.
[ Use this link to access information about the whitener used with a specific system. ]
In comparison, at-home teeth whiteners usually contain the equivalent of 3 to 10% hydrogen peroxide. This difference in concentration explains why professional treatments can achieve results much more quickly.
A whitener with a neutral pH is best.
Manufacturers try to formulate their bleaching products so they have a neutral pH (are non-acidic). This is because teeth are mineralized tissues, and placing an acidic whitener on a tooth's surface, especially for an extended period of time, could damage it.
Manufacturers try to insure product freshness and consistency.
Many professional teeth whiteners come prepackaged as two individual components. They are then mixed by the dentist, at the time of use. This approach helps to insure product freshness because active ingredients are not mixed until a point where they will be immediately used.
Other products come pre-mixed and ready to use. The advantage here is there is no question about the exact composition of the whitener, it was mixed at the factory.
If the product is mixed by the dentist, usually one of the two components is termed the "activator." The idea is that the activator acts as a catalyst that speeds up the breakdown of the hydrogen peroxide into its reactive components. As a result, the whitening process is sped up and enhanced.
There may be some credibility to this claim. Chemical activation could explain why different products, which have different peroxide concentrations, give similar whitening results.
Some whiteners "require" the use of a bleaching light or laser.
Every whitening systems comes with a set of instructions. And with some systems, the indicated protocol includes the use of whitener "activation" using a light or laser.
Some of the brand names of systems that make use of a bleaching light are:
- BriteSmile ® - Gas plasma / light emitting diode.
- Zoom! ™ - Metal halide light.
- LaserSmile ™ - A Biolase ® laser.
- LumaCool ™ - Halogen light.
- Sapphire ™ - Plasma arc light.
- Beyond ™ - Halogen light.
As our next section discusses, not all a research suggests that the use of a bleaching light is really necessary.
Are bleaching lights really a necessary part the whitening process?
There is a bit of controversy in the dental community as to whether light activation of the whitener really contributes to the tooth whitening process.
Clearly the manufacturers of light-activated whitening products make the claim that using a light does speed up the whitening process and makes it more effective. But is this really true?
What does the light do?
While the specific rational associated with each company's product differs, the general idea is that light (or laser) "activation" triggers a quicker degradation of the peroxide whitener into its reactive components (oxygen free radicals). This, in turn, speeds up the rate at which the tooth whitening process takes place and enhances the treatment's results.
If this rationale is accurate, it necessitates that a dentist must purchase the manufacturer's bleaching light, an item that can cost many thousands of dollars, or, in the case of a laser, tens of thousands of dollars.
Well, is a light really needed?
Historically, there seems to have been a general acceptance by the dental community that a bleaching light was required. Nowadays, there is a realization by dentists that not all clinical studies looking into this matter have confirmed this as fact.
At least a pair of studies (Hein 2003, Kugle 2006) appear to have concluded that the bleaching compounds used with many professional teeth whitening systems seemed to lighten teeth equally well, regardless of whether or not a light source had been used.
These studies were set up as "split arch" evaluations. This means that the teeth on one side of the person's mouth were treated with just the in-office whitener alone, while the teeth on the other side were exposed to both the whitener and the activating light.
As we stated previously, in these studies, the evaluators came to the conclusion that the teeth on both sides lightened equally well (both in initial comparisons and at evaluations made some weeks after the whitening treatment had been performed).
We'll admit we're biased.
Of course, there are studies that suggest that light activation of the whitener is an import step. And we'll admit, we didn't even look for any of these. We'll simply state that we're admittedly biased on this point. But we'll also point out that a great deal of the research documenting the importance of using a light is paid for by the very manufacturers that profit from selling these units.
Are there any professional systems that don't require the use of a bleaching light?
For the reasons stated above, many dentists and product manufacturers alike do not incorporate a bleaching light into their whitening protocol. Some of the brand names of the systems that do not use light activation (or else consider it to be optional) are:
- Opalescence ® Xtra ® Boost ™
- Niveous ™
- The Sapphire ™ Chairside system.
- NUPRO ® White Gold / Illumine ™ system.
Are there any reasons why a light shouldn't be used?
It's well known to dentists that there is a correlation between the amount of heat that's created during bleaching treatments and the patient's potential for experiencing post-treatment tooth sensitivity, pain, or tissue damage. However, with today's products and systems, overheating the teeth typically isn't much of a problem.
Historically, light sources did create a significant temperature change for the teeth being treated. That was the whole idea of the light, a warmer whitening solution produced a faster breakdown of the hydrogen peroxide into its reactive components.
Today's lights have minimal potential for creating a heating effect. They either filter out their output's infrared emissions or else they are used in a manner where no tooth-heating affect is created.
So, can a light be used?
There's no reason a bleaching light shouldn't be used, as long as no heating affect is created. Of course, we'll remind you that some studies do seem to indicate that whitening products work just as well with, or without, light activation.
So if the idea that the use of a bleaching light, which must ultimately increase the cost of your treatments, is not a big factor to you. Or, if you feel like us that no light is needed but you don't mind going through a sham process that's used just to impress patients. Then no, there is no problem with the use of a bleaching light during whitening treatments.
