Effect of bleaching on color and surface topography of teeth with enamel caries treated with resin infiltration (ICON(®)) and remineralization (casein phosphopeptide–amorphous calcium phosphate)

BACKGROUND: Dental bleaching is not recommended on teeth with enamel caries. AIM: The study aimed to assess the efficacy of in-office bleaching on demineralized enamel managed by resin infiltration (RI) as well as casein phosphopeptide–amorphous calcium phosphate (CPP-ACP). METHODOLOGY: Forty-eight sound enamel specimens were divided into four groups based on the surface treatment performed before in-office bleaching. Group I consisted of no caries and no treatment (NT); Group II had artificial caries (AC) and NT; Group III had AC treated with RI, and Group IV had AC remineralized with CPP-ACP. Pre- and postbleaching teeth color and surface topography were evaluated using spectrophotometer and scanning electron microscope (SEM), respectively. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: One-way analysis of variance and Tukey’s post hoc test were performed for inter-group comparisons. RESULTS: The color change postbleaching was the least in Group IV; and this was significantly less than Group I (P < 0.05) and Group II (P < 0.001). The bleaching efficiency in Group III was not significantly different from the control group. In addition, the enamel topographic changes were less in the surface-treated group. CONCLUSION: RI can be considered a treatment modality for teeth with enamel caries requiring tooth whitening as the bleaching efficiency was like that of sound enamel.