Tooth bleaching effects 
on the adhesive interface 
of composite restorations

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of different bleaching techniques on the tooth-restoration interface of composite restorations. Cavities (3 x 3 x 2 mm) were prepared in 100 bovine incisor fragments, which were etched with a conventional adhesive system and restored with a nanocomposite. The fragments were randomly divided into five groups (n = 20): Control (no bleaching), At-home bleaching (HB) (10% hydrogen peroxide [HP]), In-office bleaching (OB) (35% HP), LED-activated bleaching (LB) (35% HP activated by LED), and Laser-activated bleaching (LaB) (35% HP activated by diode laser, λ = 880 nm). After bleaching, 10 samples per group were thermocycled (500 cycles, 5°C to 55°C), immersed in 50% silver nitrate solution, sectioned, evaluated under a stereomicroscope, and scored for microleakage. The other samples were pH cycled for 14 consecutive days, sectioned, and the enamel adjacent to the adhesive interface assessed by cross-sectional Knoop hardness. The data were compared using the one-way ANOVA (α = 0.05). No differences between the microleakage indexes found for the control and experimental groups were observed. The enamel of the bleached groups located near the adhesive interface presented the same Knoop hardness numbers as the samples of the control group. Tooth bleaching does not damage the tooth-restoration interface of composite restorations.