Matt Welebir, DDS

Invisalign has to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. It is an awesome treatment option in a majority of cases but there are some instances where traditional braces are a better option.

Over 50% of my current Invisalign cases reflect your exact concerns: Age 30-55, history of not wearing retainers and lower crowding. In most cases, Invisalign is a slam dunk and can correct this predictably.

Orthodontists sometimes charge more for Invisalign because the lab costs are fairly astronomical when compared to conventional braces. At age 35, no one wants metal brackets anymore, and Invisalign is likely to be a great option for you.

Hope that helps.

Da Vinci veneers are fabricated by the Da Vinci laboratory and they have very successfully branded themselves. While their veneers are not at all bad, they are not the "best" as there are a ton of other great labs doing similar work who haven't "trademarked" their porcelain work. My premium lab, a one-man show who is an absolute artist from Japan, does 100% of my veneer cases (I have a 10-unit case starting on Thursday); his work goes head-to-head with any great veneer work out there.

More important is researching the doctor out there who will complete your treatment. Once you've seen "before and after" photos and feel comfortable with their skill and personality, then ask what type of porcelain they plan on using and which lab; I routinely use a porcelain called "Empress" which is beautiful and exceptionally strong.

Hope that helps.

If you are already prone to tooth sensitivity and still want to bleach, I'd advise you to follow this protocol:

• Always bleach at home with custom, lab-fabricated bleaching trays; nothing fits better or will obtain better results.
• Minimize bleaching time to 15-30 minutes only, utilizing a 20% or 37% carbamide peroxide whitening gel.
• Pre-medicate with 600 mg Ibuprofen 45 minutes before you bleach. You can also pretreat your teeth with a fluoride (varnish or a prescription paste like Fluoridex or Prevident) at the same time.
• Don't overload the trays, use minimal amounts of bleach, about the size of a BB in each tray well.
• Brush all remnants of bleach off the teeth immediately following treatment and rinse well. Use fluoride or a prescription desensitizer, like potassium nitrate, inside the trays and "soak" the teeth.
• Be careful not to dehydrate the teeth too much; this is accomplished by short treatment times and thorough rinsing when finished.

Hope this helps.

Zoom! Whitening can yield great results but is contingent on numerous factors, i.e. pre-treatment shade of teeth, age, density of enamel, etc. Your ulcers could have been totally prevented; they occurred due to inadequate isolation of the teeth and the bleaching agent is very caustic to soft tissue or gums and lips--they'll get burned unless they're out of the way! My practices always include take-home custom bleaching trays as part of the Zoom! treatment so patients can maintain what they paid for.

The level of whiteness right out of treatment had a lot to do with dehydration of the teeth; as they dry out, they get lighter. As they rehydrated over the next 24 hours, teeth will have some refractory darkening. The yellow tinge is the second layer of the tooth showing through, the dentin. It can be mustard-yellow in color and, as the enamel is thin and translucent at the tops of teeth, you get some show-through.

Zoom! is a great kickstart for whitening but nothing will get that deep, prolonged white look better than custom trays and regular, careful, at-home use.

Hope that helps!