Avaliação da eficiência de agentes anti-hiperestésicos no tratamento da hiperestesia dentinária

Abstract

Dentinal hypersensitivity is a complex sensorial condition which can cause considerable concern in the dental office. Despite the large number of different proposed kinds of treatment, there is no product or therapy reported in literature that could be considered ideal to eliminate this uncomfortable situation. The aim of this study, comprised by two manuscripts, was: (1) to critically review the literature related to the main evidences about the etiology and the management of dentinal hypersensitivity; (2) to evaluate the clinical performance of different dentine desensitizers in the treatment of dentinal hypersensitivity. In study 1, the scientific literature related to the issue was analyzed through the results of laboratory and clinical investigations searched using medline and manual tracing of references cited scientific papers. In study 2, a total of 164 teeth, from 30 patients with clinical diagnosis of moderate or severe dentinal hypersensitivity, were randomly divided into three groups and clinically evaluated according to the desensitizing treatment under study: gallium-aluminun-arsenide (GaAlAs) laser therapy, 3% potassium oxalate application and placebo gel application. Treatment sessions were performed at seven-day intervals for four consecutive weeks and the degree of sensitivity in response to tactile (probe) and evaporative (air blast) stimuli was assessed according to a visual analogue scale at baseline, immediately after and three months after the last treatment session. Data scores were submitted to Kruskal-Wallis statistical analysis (p=0.05) and were analyzed by dentinal hypersensitivity reduction for each observational moment in relation to baseline. The critical review presented in study 1 showed that the reviewed literature points out several treatment modalities ranging from simple procedures, which can be performed by the patient him/herself, to complex procedures that involve the combination of therapies. The results of study 2 demonstrated that the treatment of dentinal hypersensitivity performed with both active and control groups produced statistically significant reduction of pain in response to evaporative and tactile stimulation immediately after and three months after treatment (p<0.05). No significant differences among the three groups could be detected in both immediate and mediate evaluations irrespective of the applied stimulus (p>0.05). In conclusion, the results of these studies suggest that knowledge about the available desensitizing products and the factors involved in the mechanism of the dentinal hypersensitivity is indispensable in order to perform an effective treatment. Besides, it could be concluded that the three treatments performed in the clinical study were effective for treating dentinal hypersensitivity and that the placebo effect plays an important role in sensitivity reduction.