Effect of Whitening Toothpastes and Brushing on Microhardness of Esthetic Restorative Materials

OBJECTIVE: Whitening toothpastes are widely used. Hence, it is important to understand their effect on the surface properties of restorative materials. To evaluate the effect of three over-the-counter whitening toothpastes and toothbrushing simulation on microhardness of three restorative materials. Study design: Forty cylindrical (10×2mm) specimens were prepared from each restorative material and randomly assigned into four groups/10 each according to the whitening toothpastes used and distilled water (control). All specimens were measured for microhardness (Baseline–T1). The specimens were brushed with a soft brush using an in vitro tooth-brushing simulator with the assigned whitening toothpaste using the same setting for brushing cycles/load for all groups. Specimens were then measured for microhardness (T2) similar to baseline. Results: The highest (mean±SD) microhardness after application of the whitening toothpastes and brushing was recorded for Intense White and Filtek Z250 XT (127.6±1.8), followed by Optic White and Fuji ll LC (73.9±0.9) and Optic White and Photac Fill (72.7±1.3). There was statistically significant difference for microhardness between pre- and post-application of the whitening toothpastes and brushing for all tested restorative materials (P=0.0001). The microhardness of Filtek Z250XT with 3D White post-application of the whitening toothpastes and brushing was lowest compared to other toothpastes and control (P=0.0001). Conclusion: Microhardness increased after application of the whitening toothpastes and toothbrushing simulation for all combination of tested restorative materials and whitening toothpastes. The microhardness of FIiltek Z250XT with 3D White post-application of the whitening toothpastes and brushing was lowest compared to other toothpastes and control.