Journal of Oral Hygiene & Health
Open Access

Research Article

Patient Satisfaction and Complications of Over-the-Counter Bleaching Products

¹Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden

²Institute of Odontology, University of Gothenburg, Sweden

³Nordic Institute of Dental Materials (NIOM), Oslo, Norway

*Corresponding Author:

Dr. Ellen Bruzell
Senior Scientist, NIOM
Sognsveien 70A, NO-0855
Oslo, Norway
Tel: +4767512200
Fax: +4767591530
E-mail: ebr@niom.no

Received Date: December 20, 2014; Accepted Date: March 30, 2015; Published Date: April 30, 2015

Citation: Heinisch C, Larsson K, Mattsson J, Karlsson S, Alstad T, et al. (2015) Patient Satisfaction and Complications of Over-the-Counter Bleaching Products. J Oral Hyg Health 3:176. doi: 10.4172/2332-0702.1000176

Copyright: © 2015 Heinisch C, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Objective: To compare two home-based over-the-counter (OTC) bleaching tray products with similar hydrogen peroxide (HP) concentrations with respect to tooth lightening efficacy and potential to induce negative side effects in tobacco- and non-tobacco users as well as degree of satisfaction with product handling. The HP concentrations were near the regulation limit for bleaching products of 6% set by the European Union in 2011.
Materials and Methods: The clinical trial was randomized, single-blind and included 41 patients (93% completed) who were allocated into three bleaching groups: non-tobacco users treated with either 16% (corresponding to 5.8% HP) or 22% (corresponding to 7.9% HP) carbamide peroxide (CP) and tobacco users treated with 22% CP. Total bleaching time was 10.5 hours within 14 days. Tooth shade was visually assessed using a commercial shade guide. Side effects and satisfaction with the bleaching outcome and product handling were reported through a perception scale and a questionnaire.
Results: Tooth lightening was similar (p>0.05) and significantly increased (p<0.05) for all groups. Patient age (> 31 years) was negatively correlated (p<0.05) and tobacco use was positively correlated (p<0.05) with bleaching efficacy. A percentage of 97% (n=38) of the patients experienced some form and degree of side effect, most frequently tooth hypersensitivity and gingival irritation. Patient satisfaction with the bleaching result was positively correlated with the user-friendliness of the product (p<0.05).
Conclusion: A large number of side effects were reported after bleaching treatment with OTC products after a short treatment time. Prior to bleaching, patients should be informed of the major individual differences in both bleaching efficacy and degree and number of side effects.

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