This lady had receding gums and worn necks of her teeth which were sensitive to cold, hot, sweet and sour.
We used air abrasion to roughen the surface and bonded some composite (tooth coloured filling material) to rebuild the contour of the teeth. This will now protect them from further wear.
Do you find your teeth are sensitive when you have hot or cold beverages?
Do you use a hard bristle toothbrush?
Does your toothbrush have splayed bristles?
When your teeth become sensitive to cold and hot and you start noticing that they look yellowish towards the gum line despite regular brushing, it may be due to over brushing or using a hard bristle toothbrush.
The naturally yellow colour of the dentine may now be visible from having brushed away enamel (which is thinner at the necks of teeth). Dentine is softer than enamel and wears away quicker leaving a wedge shaped lesion. The gum may also have been pushed down (gum recession). Both these things can increase tooth sensitivity.
To replace missing tooth structure and eliminate sensitivity we are able to use a minimally invasive composite bonding technique. Firstly, we use air-abrasion which roughens the tooth surface and improves adhesion for the tooth coloured composite filling material. We then using a bonding agent and apply the correct colour of composite. An intense blue light is used to harden the material. The surface is now better able to resist wear and blends in with the surrounding tooth surface giving an overall natural result. Often this technique allows us to avoid using a drill.
This video shows how air abrasion works. A fine jet of particles is used to prepare a very small cavity in the tooth surface. It feels like air blowing on the tooth and is used instead of a drill.
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