KoR Whitening.
After significant research, Dr. Maher chose to offer a high-tech whitening line from KoR Whitening. He believes their research and manufacturing are the best in the business. They are not the cheapest, but they will not waste your time and money. Dr. Maher and several staff members have personally used the product line and come away very impressed.
Surface stains vs. deep tooth color
EXTERNAL stains are on the surface — brown discoloration that accumulates over months from pigmented food and drink like coffee, tea, and blueberries. This gets cleaned off when we polish your teeth at a cleaning appointment.
The actual DEEPER, INTERNAL tooth color is unaffected by surface staining and can be modified with a peroxide formulation. The chemistry of whitening requires duration, intensity, and frequency of contact with the oxidizing agent.
Why refrigeration matters
Dental peroxide formulations need to be “active” to work on teeth. This also means the material is quite perishable and especially sensitive to heat, which is why bleaching gel is typically refrigerated — both at the office and at home.
However, the SHIPMENT of material from factory to dental office is a problem. If good material gets stuck in a truck or warehouse over a weekend at 100°F+, it can completely wipe out the effectiveness of that shipment. KoR addresses this by shipping all product overnight in cold packs and only on Mon, Tue, Wed — so no batch gets unknowingly ruined over a weekend.
Neutral pH protects enamel
Enamel is like a marble countertop — basically inert mineral, resistant to all kinds of chemistry in the short term, but long term is damaged by exposure to ACID. Sustained tooth whitening is not a problem as long as the formulation is neutral pH / non-acidic. All KoR products are neutral pH or slightly basic.
The combined home + in-office protocol
KoR best results are achieved with a combined home and in-office protocol. Generally stronger oxidizing agents (still neutral pH) are used in office, with lip retraction and suction to protect soft tissue and keep bleach from being inactivated or diluted by saliva.
The most efficient whitening is accomplished with a combined home and in-office strategy. Daily home bleaching for 2–8 weeks, depending on the case, increases the permeability of the teeth so that the in-office visit can have greater effect.
We also offer in-office only whitening, but it will likely end up costing more and being less effective than one of the combined protocols.
A word on over-the-counter
A lot of OTC whitening pens, paints, and the like use very acidic formulations (for peroxide shelf stability) and are not produced by reputable companies with a history of standing behind their products. Permanent damage to teeth is expensive to repair.
Ready to schedule?
Call our Walnut Creek office — we’ll find a time that works, and confirm whether your insurance plan applies.