Clinical effectiveness of two commercial fluoride varnish formulations on the control of white spot lesion in primary teeth: A pilot study

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the in vivo clinical effectiveness of two commercial fluoride varnish formulations. Material and Methods: The sample consisted of seven children aged 2-5 years for a total of 24 active white spot lesions (WSL) in primary teeth. Children were randomly divided into two groups in accordance with the varnish used: G1 - Duraphat® - DR (n = 14 WSL); and G2 - Duofluorid XII® - DF (n = 10 WSL). Children were submitted to treatment with varnishes applied once a week for four consecutive weeks. Maximum mesiodistal and incisogengival dimensions were measured with a periodontal probe at the beginning of treatment and on the fifth week of treatment. The average between the two dimensions represented the value of the WSL dimension. The comparison of the mean final values of WSL dimensions between groups of fluoride varnishes tested was analyzed by the Mann-Whitney U test. The significance level adopted was 5%. Results: After five weeks, most WSL were ranked as inactive (G1 = 71.4% and G2 = 40%). No significant difference between G1 and G2 in relation to lesion activity was observed (p = 0.124). There was a significant decrease of 24% between initial (3.12 mm ± 1.49 mm) and final WSL dimension (2.35 mm ± 1.06 mm) (p = 0.012) in G1. In G2, there was a significant reduction of 40% in lesion dimension with initial value of 5.7 mm (± 3.82 mm) and final value of 3.4 mm (± 3.35 mm) (p = 0.013). Regarding the reduction in the WSL dimension, no significant difference between groups was observed (p = 0.931). Conclusion: Both fluoride varnish formulations tested had similar effect on the control of active white spot lesions in primary teeth.