A swift, easy and cheap protocol to evaluate the tooth bleaching in vitro

Background: This study aims to develop a protocol that optimizes in vitro dental bleaching procedures in a cheap, fast and accessible manner. Material and Methods: 18 bovine incisors were cut and polished in enamel/dentin and submitted to staining in coffee solution during 72 hours. After the standardization and staining of the enamel surfaces, three groups (n = 6) were formed to receive three different gels, WHITENESS (commercial gel); H 2 O 2 - 5% (manipulated gel); CAR - BOPOL GEL (manipulated gel and without H 2 O 2 ). The color of the enamel surfaces was evaluated using digital images, obtained with digital camera and controlled luminosity, before and after staining, as well as after each bleaching step. Results: The average bleaching after 48 hours of procedure was: WHITENESS with 13.6 (± 1.2); H 2 O 2 (5%) with 9.8 (± 1.4) and CARBOPOL GEL with 2.9 (± 0.6). After 72 hours, WHITENESS presented a mean of 15.8 (± 0.7), the H 2 O 2 group (5%) 14.4 (± 1.5) and CARBOPOL GEL 4.6 (± 1.0). After completing 96 hours of whitening, WHI - TENESS presented an average of 18.3 (± 0.8), H 2 O 2 (5%) 16.7 (± 1.4) and CARBOPOL GEL 7.3 (± 0.8). Our data demonstrated that the protocol development for us can be used to evaluate dental bleaching in a short time, with 96 hours already was possible to detect significant differences, when compared with the longer times of experimental dental bleaching. Conclusions: The proposed protocol guarantees statistically significant results in 96 hours, confirming the efficacy, cheapness, viability and practicality of the protocol developed in this study