ORIGINAL ARTICLE   

Minerva Stomatologica 2018 April;67(2):55-61

DOI: 10.23736/S0026-4970.17.04037-7

Copyright © 2017 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

lingua: Inglese

Tooth color changes and sensitivity in patients undergoing dental bleaching with 10% hydrogen peroxide using customized trays or strips: a randomized clinical trial

Bianca ROSSI ¹, Patrícia M. FREITAS ², Tamara K. TEDESCO ¹, Flávia GONÇALVES ¹, Leila S. FERREIRA ¹ ✉

¹ Master Program In Dentistry, School of Dentistry, Ibirapuera University, São Paulo, Brazil; ² Special Laboratory of Lasers in Dentistry (LELO), Department of Restorative Dentistry, School of Dentistry, São Paulo University, São Paulo, Brazil

BACKGROUND: This paper aimed to compare the tooth color changes and sensitivity in patients undergoing dental bleaching with 10% hydrogen peroxide using customized trays or strips as delivering systems.
METHODS: A total of 50 patients aged between 18-30 years old were assigned into two groups (N.=25) according to the bleaching treatment: tray (TB) or strips (SB). For both techniques, the patients underwent a 30-minute application of 10% hydrogen peroxide twice a day for seven days. Tooth color was evaluated before, 3 and 7 days of treatment, and 14 days after bleaching using a tooth color shade guide (VITA® shade). Tooth sensitivity was assessed using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). The values obtained from the color changes and tooth sensitivity were statistically analyzed (α=5%).
RESULTS: For both groups, there was a significant difference on the tooth color before and after bleaching (P<0.001), although there was no significant difference between them (P=0.4215). The SB group exhibited a lower frequency of sensitivity (50.2%) compared to the TB group (70.2%) (P<0.001). However, the highest number of individuals reporting score 1 of sensitivity was found in the SB group (37.3%) compared to the TB group (20.9%) (P<0.001). For the other scores, there were no differences between the SB and TB groups, with results of 9.8% and 8.4% for score 2 (P=0.744) and 2.7% and 0.5% for score 3 (P=0.122).
CONCLUSIONS: The bleaching effect of 10% hydrogen peroxide is not influenced by the delivering system (tray or strips). Even though the technique with strips was associated to a lower frequency of dental sensitivity, the peak level of pain was greater when compared to the technique using trays.

KEY WORDS: Tooth bleaching - Tooth bleaching agents - Hydrogen peroxide - Dental enamel - Tooth discoloration