Bleaching materials containing hydrogen peroxide have been used for treating discolored nonvital teeth but their use was occasionally associated with external root resorption. In a previous study it was found that the immediate results of bleaching teeth in vitro were equal for sodium perborate mixed with either water or hydrogen peroxide. The purpose of this study was to compare the bleaching prognosis of sodium perborate mixed with water or hydrogen peroxide over a 1-yr period. Extracted human teeth with intact crowns were discolored with human erythrocytes and bleached by sodium perborate mixed with either 30% hydrogen peroxide (group A), 3% hydrogen peroxide (group B), or water (group C). The bleaching materials were placed in the pulp chambers of the discolored teeth and sealed with IRM. They were replaced with fresh preparations after 3 and 7 days. After 14 days the coronal access cavities were sealed with composite resin and the teeth photographed with a color slide film under standardized conditions. The teeth were stored in artificial saliva for 1 yr and photographed after 3, 6, and 12 months. Two separate evaluators ranked the teeth by comparing them with the shades before and after bleaching. The bleaching success rates of the tested groups at each time interval were compared and analyzed statistically. It was found that after 1 yr all of the teeth in groups A and C maintained their shades. In 20% of the teeth in group B there was color regression. Statistically, these differences were not significant.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)