A conservative approach to esthetically treat stained arrested caries lesions

Esthetic treatment of stained arrested caries lesions (ACLs) has mostly been done using invasive restorative techniques. The aim of this paper was to propose and report the efficacy of a conservative approach based on dental bleaching to esthetically treat these lesions, both experimentally (extracted teeth) and clinically. In a laboratory experiment, ten extracted human teeth with stained ACLs in either pit and fissure or smooth surface were selected and treated with 15% carbamide peroxide gel, 4 h per day, for a total of 6 days. The second part of the paper reports a clinical case of pit and fissure-stained ACLs in four posterior teeth, which were treated with 40% hydrogen peroxide in-office bleaching. Digital photographs were taken in both parts to document the efficacy of the treatment. The lesions showed noticeable increase in color lightness indicating the efficacy and suitability of the proposed approach. By using the conservative clinical technique presented, the esthetics of most stained ACLs could be improved, eliminating the need for invasive restorative treatments. Keywords: arrested caries lesion, bleaching, carbamide peroxide, color change, esthetics, hydrogen peroxide