Tetracycline Stains and No Money

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I have had tetracycline stains on my teeth since childhood. All the research says to put porcelain veneers on your teeth to cover them but my dentist doesn’t do porcelain veneers. He does do crowns, which he has suggested we use. Even that, however, is out of my reach. Are there any other alternatives?

Callie

Dear Callie,

smile with tetracycline stains

I am very glad you wrote. For the benefit of others reading, who may not know what tetracycline stains are (pictured above), I am going to give a brief explanation. Tetracycline is a prescription medication. If you take it before your permanent teeth are formed, which generally happens at the age of twelve, it will deposit in the dentin of your teeth and show up as a dark brown or gray stains.

The best solution to this is porcelain veneers, which would need to be done in the hands of an expert cosmetic dentist. Covering tetracycline stains is one of the most advanced and tricky procedures dentists have to do. They have to make the cover opaque enough to cover the dark stains, but still translucent enough to look sparkling and natural.

Some family dentists who are not skilled in cosmetic dentistry try to make up for this by doing porcelain crowns. I will be honest with you, any dentist that suggests dental crowns for this is a big red flag. They are telling you, “I can’t do porcelain veneers, but I’m totally willing to grind down healthy tooth structure to rake in money for what I do know.” If they don’t do porcelain veneers, they are not skilled enough in cosmetic work to make these crowns look good. Even most dentists who do porcelain veneers don’t have the skills for tetracycline stains.

Tetraycycline Stains and No Money

You have a few options. First, you can leave the teeth as they are while saving up for the high-end (and higher priced) procedure. This obviously would depend on how long it would take you to reach your goal.

Second, you can have teeth whitening done. When you do this, know that it won’t be done in one tube of gel. In fact, you will have to be persistent, but if you are, it will work. One thing to note is I don’t recommend Zoom Whitening for this. It is more expensive than the take-home trays whitening. It is a fantastic whitener, but you will need too many sessions for it to be financially do-able for you. Of course, you could do one zoom appointment to get a jump start and then do the rest with trays. As far as tray teeth whittening goes, see if your dentist offers or is willing to purchase kör whitening for you. This is the most potent gel available.

Your final option is to have the teeth whitening done while saving up. This allows you to make some progress if it is going to take you a long time to get to the cost goal. If you choose this, you may even find you are happy enough with your whitening results that you no longer feel the need for porcelain veneers. Just bear in mind it will take a while for the whitening to really make a difference.

This blog is brought to you by East Cobb Dentist Dr.Cristi Cheek.

Is Taking Tetracycline as An Adult Bad for Your Teeth?

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My doctor has me on tetracycline for acne. My dentist recently noticed the brownish lines on the back of my teeth. My mother thinks these might be from the tetracycline. Is this medicine bad for my teeth? Is there a way to get rid of the stains?

Maggie

Dear Maggie,

Smile with tetracycline stained teeth.

 

You did not mention how old you are, so I am not going to make any assumptions. Generally, tetracycline only stains your teeth if they are still forming. So, if you are over thirteen years of age (and your writing certainly indicates that) then it is unlikely that tetracycline is the culprit. That being said, there is one study that did indicate a specific variety of tetracycline, called minocycline, can stain adult teeth after they are formed. That would be the first thing I would check.

A great toothpaste to help remove surface stains is Supersmile toothpaste. Please don’t try and use any other over-the-counter whitening toothpaste that you can get. They use abrasives to scrub off stains. While it will make your teeth temporarily whiter, the abrasives damage your enamel and make it much easier for them to pick up stains.

If these are true tetracycline stains, and you are in the early stages, you can try teeth whitening, but you will have to be persistent with it. Other than that, you would have to fix them by covering them with porcelain veneers, though veneers do not go on the back of teeth.

This blog is brought to you by Marietta Dentist Dr. Cristi Cheek.
Click here to learn how to get a free virtual smile makeover consultation.

 

Inexpensive Way to Cover Tetracycline Stains

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I’m 65 years old and retiring. I have some savings but not a ton. All my life, I’ve been embarrassed by my smile, which is marred by tetracycline stains. I know people say to get porcelain veneers for these, which are a bit out of my budget. Do you think if I had them done at a dental school, they would be more affordable?

Elaine

Dear Elaine,

woman covering her mouth with her hand

I don’t recommend you have a dental school do your porcelain veneers. The art of smile makeovers isn’t really taught at dental school. General dentistry is more of an engineering mindset and doesn’t bother with what they consider mere cosmetic electives. Any student who did your veneers would likely be doing their first case. Not only that, but it could very well be the instructor’s first case as well. Whatever they did would not give you the results you want. Plus, tetracycline stains are some of the toughest stains to do. The type of dentist you need would charge $1000-%1200 minimum per tooth. That’s not the inexpensive solution you’re looking for.

In most cases, teeth whitening doesn’t work on tetracycline stains because they’re so dark and deep. However, there is one brand that has had more success than other’s because it has a unique way of delivering the gel that gives it some more potency. Ask your dentist to use Kör whitening. It may not get rid of the stains completely, but it will certainly lighten them. Worst case scenario this gives you some time to save up to have any porcelain veneers done by the right dentist.

When selecting one, don’t just go by their price, even though I quoted one as a guide. Ask them how many tetracycline cases they’ve done. You don’t want someone new at it. Then ask to see the before and after pictures that show their results. It won’t matter if they’ve done 100 cases if they did them all badly.

If you would like to know what our office could do for you, just ask us for a remote smile consult. Send us a couple of selfies and we’ll send you back a video that will explain your options.

This blog is brought to you by East Cobb Dentist Dr. Cristi Cheek.

Crowns or Veneers for Tetracycline Stains?

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I have tetracycline stains that I am ready to get fixed. I’ve seen two dentists— my regular general dentist and a local cosmetic dentist. My dentist suggested porcelain crowns. He’s done a crown for me before and it looked very nice and natural. The cosmetic dentist suggested porcelain veneers. The cost for the dental crowns is half the price of the porcelain veneers. I want to do this right. These teeth have bothered me for years. But, is there a significant reason to spend the extra money for the porcelain veneers?

Ellie

Dear Ellie,

single porcelain veneer being held up by a dental tool

A Porcelain Veneer

I’m glad you are asking questions. The first thing you need to know is there isn’t a recognized specialty in cosmetic dentistry. Just because a dentist calls themselves a cosmetic dentist doesn’t mean they are better. Nor does the fact that they charge more. That being said, I wouldn’t have the crowns done.

Tetracycline stains are one of the most difficult types of cosmetic cases a dentist can work with. They have to make the porcelain opaque enough to cover the stains while translucent enough to still look natural. When it comes to tetracycline stains, the porcelain crowns are an overly aggressive treatment.

The teeth have to be ground down quite a bit in order for there to be room for the dental crowns. This weakens the teeth and puts them at risk of breaking. Often dentists inexperienced in treating these type of stains recommend the crowns because they aren’t confident in their skills doing porcelain veneers. So the fact that your dentist wants to do the much more aggressive crowns is a red flag.

Additionally, there is no guarantee after you unnecessarily grind these teeth down that the crowns will be good enough. I know you said he’s done a crown for you before and you were happy with it. However, doing one crown is very different than dealing with a smile makeover, especially when tetracycline is involved.

Recommended Treatment for Tetracycline Stains

Most cosmetic dentists will suggest porcelain veneers. This can change anything and everything about your teeth— the shape, the size, the color. This is the go-to procedure for celebrities who want a smile makeover. It can do more than cover your tetracycline stains. It can give you the smile you’d always dreamed of having, not only covering the stains you are embarrassed by, but giving you a superstar smile.

Check the Dentist’s Results

I highly recommend you don’t just choose between these two dentists. You have a world of dentists available to you. But be careful in your choice. This is a very difficult cosmetic dentistry procedure, and it may be hard to tell if the dentist has enough skill to do this right. What I would suggest is to ask to see before and after smile gallery photographs of tetracycline cases they’ve personally done. If they can’t show you that, keep looking for another cosmetic dentist.

You also need to insist they do a temporary try-in of your porcelain veneers when they’re done. There is a try-in paste which will allow you to see the veneers on your teeth without bonding them. This enables you to look at them in various lighting and determine if they are what you wanted. If you’re at the right dental office, the dentist will be willing to send the case back to the laboratory and not bond them on if you are at all hesitant about how they look.

This blog is brought to you by East Cobb Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Cristi Cheek.