An Interview with KöR® Whitening
Rod Kurthy, DMD, Founder, CEO, Chief Researcher at Evolve Dental Technologies
INSIDE DENTISTRY (ID): What need in the marketplace led to the creation of the KöR Whitening System?
ROD KURTHY (RK): Historically, whitening has been a very frustrating endeavor for both patients and dental professionals. Often the whitening results are less than expected and sensitivity can also be a problem. I first participated in whitening research in 1977 and I had the opportunity to be a consultant to many other whitening companies.
My dilemma was that those companies were reluctant to take advice regarding how to improve whitening results and lower sensitivity (such as constant refrigeration) if it meant more work and higher costs for the company. After publishing my first book on whitening in 2003, many dentists urged me to start my own whitening company to provide specifically formulated products to routinely achieve stellar results with lower sensitivity.
ID: Can you explain how research has influenced the development of your company?
RK: A group of dentists stumbled on “vital bleaching” when they tried making mouth guards to fill with Gly-Oxide (which contains 10% carbamide peroxide) to treat unhealthy periodontal tissues. They were surprised to see the teeth becoming lighter. As a result, companies started making similar gels specifically to put into trays to whiten teeth.
Patients didn’t want to wait 6 to 8 weeks for the teeth to get noticeably whiter, so higher concentration gels were introduced. With high concentration in-office gels, “power whitening” was born, but it was unpredictable, so patients were sent home with trays and whitening gel after the in-office power whitening.
It was my understanding of the science of whitening—the physics, chemistry, micro-
anatomy, and physiology of teeth whitening—that allowed me to design a specific protocol and unique product formulations to work with that protocol that leveraged the science to maximize results. This is why dentists recognize KöR Whitening as the system that is so effective that it can even whiten tetracycline stained cases.
ID: For dentists who aren’t yet customers, why should they consider adding KöR Whitening to their armamentaria?
RK: To have a truly successful and growing practice, patients must be impressed and believe in the dentist. That leads to long-term patient loyalty, patients following recommendations for necessary and elective dental treatment, and patient referrals.
When patients get results that are beyond their expectations, they soon become dissatisfied with previous fillings and crowns that now look dark. They notice chips, spaces, crookedness, etc. That is when they start asking to replace existing restorations and perform other cosmetic procedures such as closure of minor spaces, tooth reshaping, repair of chips, gingival contour reshaping, sometimes up to full porcelain veneer “makeovers,” but this is dependent upon the patient getting exceptional whitening results.
ID: What feedback do you get from dentists about your products?
RK: We have over 200 cases displayed on our website that were submitted by satisfied dentists and that is just a fraction of the cases we have received. Dentists and staff frequently tell us how the amazing results lead to patients referring others to their practices and asking for additional cosmetic treatment.
Dental professionals often tell us how KöR has changed the lives of their patients, and how very excited their patients are with the results. As a result, dentists tell us that their staff feels comfortable offering teeth whitening, whereas before KöR, they were often embarrassed with the results and didn’t want to even mention whitening to their patients.
Rod Kurthy, DMD, is the founder and developer of KöR Whitening. He graduated with highest honors from Fairleigh Dickinson University School of Dentistry and completed a general practice residency at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center.
