Icon For White Spot Lesions in Calgary

Many people have white spot lesions on their teeth. Sometimes the cause of this is fluorosis due to swallowing toothpaste as a child. Sometimes it is a simple developmental anomaly and sometimes it can be due to orthodontic treatment. Often times, children and adults who wear traditional braces to straighten teeth often have a difficult time brushing their teeth where the brackets were positioned. This problem can cause white spots on teeth underneath the wires that connect the brackets. Fortunately, DMG Icon white spot treatment can treat these spots and keep them from looking as unsightly.

What are White Spot Lesions?

White spots or white spot lesions are due to hypocalcified enamel and can reflect a developmental anomaly or show early signs of dental caries or cavities. White spots have many causes, including ingesting too much fluoride, a tooth defect known as Enamel Hypoplasia that causes thin enamel, bad oral hygiene that occurs when wearing metal or ceramic braces or clear aligners, and not brushing or flossing well around the wires and brackets.

When you see white spots, you should contact our dentists for Icon white spot removal in Calgary before they develop into cavities.

What is Icon Dental Treatment?

Icon is a brand of dental treatment that removes white spots using micro-invasive technology before they can become cavities. Unlike the two treatments that dentists use now, remineralizing enamel or filling cavities, the Icon treatment doesn’t require drilling or using remineralization methods.

Instead, Icon resin infiltration strengthens and hardens enamel by filling the pores of the teeth with this product. When the product infiltrates the pores and hardens, it reflects light like natural enamel, and the discoloration of the teeth is not visible. This means that it helps to disguise the discoloration, however the cause is still present.

Injections and drilling are NOT necessary with this for most patients, because we aren’t cutting deeply into the tooth. Instead we etch the outer layer of your teeth with hydrochloric acid which provides a clean surface for us to apply the Icon resin.

This tends to work to reduce the appearance of the white spots, however, depending on the extent of the initial lesion, it may not completely remove all of the whiteness. We often recommend a few applications to help this. This treatment does tend to work well, but may not remove 100% of all lesions as the efficacy depends partly on the extent of the initial lesion as well as the cause.

What is the Aftercare for Icon Treatment?

After receiving Icon resin infiltration in Calgary, you will receive aftercare instructions from our dentists at Dental at the Met. You will want to avoid eating dark foods and drinks for at least 24 hours after the dental treatment. It will avoid staining your teeth.

It’s also not recommended to whiten your teeth professionally or with at-home products. Doing so can cause the white spots to reappear. However, the spots often go away again 24 to 48 hours after their reappearance.

How Long Does Icon Last?

The Icon white spot treatment near you will last two to six years, and you may need to do it again to eliminate the appearance of white spots. In some cases the entire lesion will not disappear completely with treatment, however we almost always see significant improvement. Please contact us for a consult for Icon resin infiltration in Calgary.