Calculus removal with diamond-coated ultrasonic inserts in vitro.

Area of Science:

• Periodontal Therapy
• Dental Instrumentation
• Biomaterials

Background:

• Efficient calculus removal is crucial in periodontal therapy.
• Diamond-coated ultrasonic inserts (DIs) show potential for enhanced dental scaling.
• This study evaluated DIs in vitro for calculus removal efficacy.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the efficiency of diamond-coated ultrasonic inserts (DIs) against hand instruments (HIs) and plain ultrasonic inserts (PIs) for dental calculus removal.
• To assess the amount of residual calculus after treatment with different instruments.
• To determine the clinical significance of any differences in calculus removal.

Main Methods:

• Extracted human teeth with moderate to severe calculus were used for in vitro analysis.
• Calculus areas were treated using sharp Gracey curets (HIs), plain ultrasonic inserts (PIs), or diamond-coated ultrasonic inserts (DIs).
• Treatment time and residual calculus area were quantified using imaging analysis.

Main Results:

• Diamond-coated ultrasonic inserts (DIs) demonstrated the fastest mean calculus removal time (29.7 seconds).
• Hand instruments (HIs) showed the least residual calculus (3.1%), followed by PIs (5.4%) and DIs (6.3%).
• Despite differences, the residual calculus percentages were deemed not clinically significant.

Conclusions:

• In vitro calculus removal was fastest with DIs, followed by HIs and PIs.
• While DIs left slightly more residual calculus, the differences were not clinically significant.
• Diamond-coated ultrasonic inserts offer a faster alternative for in vitro calculus removal in periodontal therapy.