Patient-applied treatment of dentinal hypersensitivity.

This article reviews the evidence regarding the effectiveness of various patient-applied interventions for dentinal hypersensitivity. Self-applied treatments are popular because they are both economical and easy to use. The disadvantages include compliance, difficulty to deliver to specific sites, slow onset of action, and the requirement for continuous use. Conflicting research findings make it difficult for the practitioner to determine which self-applied product to advise patients to use. There are a number of issues that have plagued research in this area, including the lack of standardization of stimulus testing and inadequate sample size. The evidence is insufficient to permit the development of evidence-based guidelines for the treatment of dentinal hypersensitivity.