Abstract
Besides prevention of caries and periodontitis, an increasing number of oral care products focus on teeth whitening. The aim of this review is to summarize and discuss frequently used whitening agents and their efficacy from a chemical viewpoint. Therefore, a comprehensive literature survey on teeth whitening agents and products was conducted. The current whitening methods are analyzed and discussed from a chemist’s viewpoint. Frequently used whitening agents are abrasives (mechanical removal of stains), antiredeposition agents (prevention of deposition of chromophores), colorants (intended to lead to a white color), proteases (degradation of proteins), peroxides (oxidation of organic chromophores), and surfactants (removal of hydrophobic compounds from tooth surface). In-office bleaching using peroxides is effective, but side effects like tooth sensitivity or a damage of the natural organic matrix of enamel and dentin may occur. The applicability of abrasives in teeth whitening is limited due to potential tooth wear, especially when toothpastes with high RDA values are used. The effect of other whitening agents in vivo is often unclear because of a shortage of placebo-controlled clinical trials.
Highlights
The mineral phase of human teeth consists of calcium phosphate in the form of hydroxyapatite, Ca5 (PO4 )3 (OH) [1,2,3,4,5]
The aim of this review is to summarize and discuss frequently used whitening agents and their efficacy from a chemical viewpoint
Whitening mouth rinses containing a low concentration of hydrogen peroxide (1.5%) and sodium hexametaphosphate have been applied with moderate success [43]
Summary
The mineral phase of human teeth consists of calcium phosphate in the form of hydroxyapatite, Ca5 (PO4 ) (OH) [1,2,3,4,5]. Whitening formulations for home use (e.g., toothpastes in combination with toothbrushes) and professional use in the dental practice (e.g., bleaching or professional dental cleaning) try to address this problem In this context, whitening is defined as any means to increase the visual whiteness of a tooth. Modern toothpastes are highly complex formulations which contain many different agents for the prevention of caries and periodontitis, e.g., fluorides (sodium fluoride, amine fluoride etc.), chlorhexidine, stannous, zinc salts and calcium phosphates such as hydroxyapatite or amorphous calcium phosphates, and surfactants as well as different abrasives for an efficient plaque removal [2,3,15,17,19,20,21,22]. An increasing number of oral care products (sometimes mainly) focus on teeth whitening. We hope that some myths (as we would like to call them) that are used to advertise some formulations will be more critically considered after our thorough assessment from a chemical point of view
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
