Effect of cervical coating of ethyl cellulose polymer and metacrylic acid copolymer on the radicular penetration of hydrogen peroxide during bleaching

Abstract Extraradicular leakage of oxidizing agents during bleaching is an undesirable event and thus need to be prevented. The effect of external cervical coating of ethyl cellulose (EC) and metacrylic acid copolymer (MAC) on the radicular penetration of hydrogen peroxide during intracoronal bleaching was examined. Single rooted human premolars extracted for orthodontic reasons were used. The cementum covering the cemento-enamel junction was mechanically removed and the teeth treated endo-dontically and bleached with 30% hydrogen peroxide. Radicular hydrogen peroxide penetration was measured before coating the teeth and after applications of 1–3 layers of EC or 3 layers of MAC external cervical coatings. It was found that the radicular penetration of 30% hydrogen peroxide was related to the number of layers of cervical EC coatings. Application of one layer of EC did not reduce the hydrogen peroxide penetration. Two and three layers of EC reduced the hydrogen peroxide penetration by 38% and 85% respectively. Three layers of MAC reduced the radicular hydrogen peroxide penetration in 83%. Statistically, a highly significant difference was found between the teeth coated with three layers of either EC or MAC and the noncoated teeth (p< 0.001). It was concluded that application of ethyl cellulose or metacrylic acid copolymer to exposed cervical root surfaces may effectively prevent extraradicular leakage of bleaching agents.