Patient guide
What professional teeth whitening actually involves
Professional teeth whitening is a cosmetic treatment that lightens the shade of the natural tooth by applying a bleaching gel under clinical supervision. At MiD we do it at our clinic on Calle Tablas 6, in central Granada, activating the gel with cold light / LED or laser depending on what we assess in your case.
The difference from an over-the-counter product is not only the strength of the gel: it is what happens before and after. Beforehand we check there are no cavities or inflamed gums, we isolate and protect the soft tissue, and we adapt the protocol to your sensitivity. Afterwards you get maintenance guidance and a follow-up to see how it went.
How many visits it takes and what the session is like
In-clinic whitening is organised in four steps: a prior check-up, a professional cleaning if needed, the whitening session itself, and maintenance guidance. How many sessions a given mouth needs depends on the starting shade and the origin of the discolouration, and that is decided at the check-up, not before.
During the session you sit with your gums isolated while the gel works. Some cold sensitivity during or in the hours after is common; tell us if it happens, because the protocol can be adapted.
What to expect afterwards: sensitivity, duration and upkeep
The most common thing after whitening is temporary sensitivity to cold that eases off over the following days. The resulting shade is not permanent: it depends a great deal on later habits.
That is why we give you specific maintenance guidance and suggest going easy in the first days on what stains most — coffee, tea, red wine, tobacco — as well as keeping up with check-ups and professional cleanings.
- Temporary cold sensitivity is the most common reaction and is managed by adapting the protocol.
- Whitening works on natural tooth structure, not on fillings, crowns or veneers.
- If you have visible restorations when you smile, we assess them first to avoid shade mismatches.
- Check-ups and professional cleaning help the result last longer.
Cold light, laser or take-home trays
There is no single best technique for everyone: there is the technique that suits each mouth. In clinic we use professional gel activated by cold light / LED or laser; in some cases the protocol is completed with custom trays for home use, always with the gel and timings we specify.
What they all have in common: they follow a check-up. If a cavity, an inflamed gum or a restoration worth replacing shows up, that is dealt with first. It is the part an over-the-counter kit cannot offer you.
When something else should be treated first
Whitening is a cosmetic treatment, not a substitute for a necessary one. If the check-up reveals decay, gum disease or a fracture, the sensible thing is to treat that first and consider whitening afterwards.
Some discolouration also behaves differently: internal staining or shade changes caused by an old restoration are studied separately, and sometimes the answer is veneers or replacing the filling. At your first visit, with the digital diagnosis in front of us, we tell you honestly what to expect in your case.
