Effect of carbamide peroxide and hydrogen peroxide on enamel surface: an in vitro study

The aim of the study was to investigate changes in the micromorphologyl and microhardness of the enamel surface after bleaching with two different concentrations of hydrogen peroxide (HP) and carbamide peroxide (CP). Bovine enamel samples were embedded in resin blocks, and polished. Specimens in the experimental groups (n = 10) were treated with bleaching gels containing 10% CP, 35% CP, 3.6% HP, and 10% HP, respectively, for 2 h every second day over a period of 2 weeks. The gels had the identical composition and pH and differed only in their HP or CP content. The roughness and morphology of the enamel surface were analyzed using laser profilometry and SEM. Microhardness was measured using a Knoop hardness tester. The data were evaluated statistically. Specimens in the 10% HP group showed significantly higher roughness after bleaching compared to the control group (ΔRa, p = 0.01). Bleaching with 35% CP showed only a tendency to increase roughness (ΔRa, p = 0.06). Application of 10% CP or 3.6% HP had no significant influence on Ra. Enamel microhardness was significantly higher after application of 10% HP compared to the control (ΔMic = 8 KHN, p = 0.0002) and 35% CP (ΔMic = 20KHN, p = 0.01) groups. In summary, application of CP and HP showed only small quantitative and qualitative differences. In addition, the influence of bleaching procedure on the morphology and hardness of the enamel surface depended on the concentration of the active ingredients.