Efficacy of and effect on tooth sensitivity of in-office bleaching gel concentrations: a randomized clinical trial

With the aim of reducing the side effects of in-office bleaching agents, less-concentrated hydrogen peroxide (HP) gels have been released by manufacturers. We evaluated the tooth sensitivity (TS) and bleaching efficacy (BE) of two HP concentrations in this study. Gels containing 35% and 20% HP (HP35 and HP20, respectively) were applied on teeth of 60 caries-free patients. Color was recorded at baseline and one week after the first and second bleaching sessions using the Vita Classical shade guide. TS was recorded on a 0-4 scale. BE at each weekly recall was evaluated by Kruskall-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests (α=0.05). Absolute risk of TS and its intensity was evaluated by Fisher exact and Mann-Whitney tests, respectively (α=0.05). After two bleaching sessions, color change of approximately eight tabs was obtained with HP35; whereas, with HP20 it was six tabs (p<0.05). Only 26.7% (HP35) and 16.7% (HP20) of the participants reported TS, and no statistical differences were detected among them. Both in-office bleaching gels showed similar TS intensity, but the 35% HP agent produced faster bleaching.