Bleaching in vital teeth: Combined treatment vs in-office treatment

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to verify that there will be greater whitening in teeth treated with combined bleaching than in those that have been applied a clinical one and to evaluate the efficiency of the clinical treatment, those cases in which it is not able, or it is not wanted, to carry out the home phase. MATERIAL AND METHODS: They were used 66 extracted anterior human teeth, which were divided into two study groups. On the one hand, the clinical group (ClG) consisted of 33 teeth, which were treated with a clinical guideline using 37.5% hydrogen peroxide in a single session of 4 applications of 8 minutes. On the other hand, the combinate group (CoG) consisted of 33 teeth, which were treated with a combined guideline, applying first a clinical treatment as in the ClG and, at home treatment with carbamide peroxide at 16% for 22 days, 90 minutes a day. The colour of the tooth was measured before and after each treatment and was made through an individualized whitening splint with a spectrophotometer. RESULTS: The 66 teeth were bleached, showing an increase in luminosity, a drecrease in yellow and a shift towards the green colours, where b (yellow-blue axis) was the only variable with a statistically significant change (p<0.001). The CoG obtained a significantly higher absolute value (p<0.001) than the ClG, being 12.99 for the first one and 19.70 for the second one. CONCLUSIONS: Combined therapy bleached more than clinical one, but both techniques were effective. In addition, it is affirmed that the clinical could be an alternative in those cases in which it is not able, or it is not wanted, to carry out the home phase. Key words:Carbamide peroxide, CIELab, combined guidelines, dental bleaching, hydrogen peroxide.