The clinical effects of a hydroxyapatite containing toothpaste for dentine hypersensitivity

Purpose: The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of hydroxyapatite containing toothpaste with positive control toothpastes in reducing dentine hypersensitivity. Materials and methods: This clinical trial was a double-blind, randomized, parallel group comparison of two, namely hydroxyapatite containing toothpaste and strontium chloride containing toothpaste. A total of 55 subjects were included in this study. The subjects were given randomly assigned one of the two toothpastes after received tooth brushing instruction at baseline. Some clinical indices(PI, GI, PD), verbal rating score(VRS) for sensitivity to stimulus, the effect in relieving sensitivity and visual analogue scale(VAS) for sensitivity at baseline, week 2, week 4 and week 8 were assessed. All data were evaluated by intention-to-treat analysis. Results: Overall, PI and GI scores were significantly reduced compare baseline in all groups(p 0.05). Conclusion: This study demonstrated that the new hydroxyapatite containing toothpaste was similarly effective in reducing dentine hypersensitivity with pre-existing benchmark toothpaste. (J Korean Acad Periodontol 2009;39:87-94)