Evaluation of a post oral hygiene carbamide peroxide bleaching gel: A pilot study

Objectives: The aim of this study is to assess two groups: the effectiveness, the six month colour stability and the patient’s sensibility. Materials and method: 50 patients from the Dental Hygiene Department, Department of Diagnostic and Pediatric Surgical Clinical Sciences of the University of Pavia were selected. The CONTROL group was treated using carbamide peroxide 16% activated by Blancone Arch light. The TEST group was treated using a combination of in office treatment and a 14 days’ at home treatment using: Blancone® Duetto: bi-phasic at-home bleaching system to be used instead of the normal toothpaste. This is divided into ACTIVE, to be used in the morning and CARE to be used in the evening. Blancone® Stick: at home whitening pen to be used once a day, in the evening before going to bed and after having brushed teeth using Blancone® Duetto CARE. Before starting the treatment, all patients, were given an informed consent and a preliminary screening questionnaire regarding the home oral hygiene habits, the foodstuffs’ habits, the bad habits and the reason why they want to undergo a professional treatment. During the first session we filled in the medical records, registered personal data, filled in the dental and periodontal charting, explained the treatment and instructed the patients regarding a correct oral hygiene. During the second session we performed the following: professional oral hygiene without using prophylaxis pastes, Vita classical shade guide detection via spectrophotometer, sensibility detection via Schiff Air Index and VAS, initial frontal photograph, 3 cycles of 8 minutes in office bleaching with Blancone Touch+, Final Vita classical shade guide detection via spectrophotometer, final frontal photograph and sensibility detection. After this we performed a 30, 60, 90 and 180 days’ examination using Vita classical shade guide detection to evaluate the relapse, evaluated the sensibility and took the frontal photographs. Results: at T1 both groups present a significant increase, that means having a strong white shade that goes from 0 to 5 shade in both groups. At T2 there can be seen significant loss in the white shade in both groups and some differences between the T2 groups and the other times without being statistically significant. As regarding the sensibility, it was discovered that the sampling was not homogeneous. During the treatment no patient felt irritation regarding the application of the whitening agent and the photoactivated light. Both groups had a sensibility increase at T1 that diminished after the subsequent examination. Conclusion: From our test it is clear that Blancone Touch+ has, in the majority of cases, an immediate effectiveness (from T0 to T1) that decreases to T1 to T2 and remains constant from T2 to T5; therefore it presents an effectiveness that is not constant in time. On the other hand using carbamide peroxide has reduced the risk and the level of tooth sensibility to figures close to zero.