Comparison of low level laser and arginine-calcium carbonate alone or combination in the treatment of dentin hypersensitivity: A randomized split-mouth clinical study

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Bal M. V., Keskiner I., Sezer U., Açlkel C., Saygun I.

Photomedicine and Laser Surgery, cilt.33, sa.4, ss.200-205, 2015 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)

Özet

Objective: This study aimed to compare the efficacy of low-level laser (LLL) and desensitizing paste (DP) containing 8% arginine-calcium carbonate, in the treatment of dentin hypersensitivity (DH) and also to determine whether their combined application would improve the efficacy of the treatment. Background data: There are various options for the treatment of DH; however, superiority of one method over others alone has not been currently demonstrated. Materials and methods: Twenty-one patients with 156 teeth affected by DH were included in the study. Selected teeth were randomly divided into five groups: LLL, DP, laser followed by DP (LLL+DP), DP followed by laser (DP+LLL) applied to one of the quadrants, and a control group, consisting of a randomly selected additional tooth in one of the quadrants. Teeth were irradiated by the 685nm diode laser treatment with 25mW at 9Hz for 100sec at 1cm2 area (2J/cm2) in interrupted mode. Pain response to evaporative stimulus was quantified on a visual analogue scale (VAS) over a 90-day period. Results: All four treatment groups experienced significant and persistent decrease in the mean VAS score immediately post-treatment until the end of the study, whereas the placebo group had high VAS scores throughout the study. On day 90, percent reduction in VAS scores was 72% for LLL, 65.4% for DP, 54.6% for LLL+DP, and 69.6% for DP+LLL, whereas the placebo group showed an increase of 7.8%. Conclusions: The application of either LLL or DP containing 8% arginine-calcium carbonate appears to be effective in decreasing DH. However, their combined use does not improve the efficacy beyond what is attainable with either treatment alone.