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Published on: July 12, 2022
Correlation between laser fluorescence readings and volume of tooth preparation in incipient occlusal caries in vitro
Eduardo S Ghaname1, André V Ritter, Harald O Heymann
1Department of Cariology, Restorative Sciences, and Endodontics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
Objective:
This study evaluated the correlation between laser fluorescence readings and the extent of incipient occlusal caries as measured by the volume of tooth preparation in vitro.
Materials And Methods:
One hundred and three permanent molars and premolars containing incipient occlusal pit-and-fissure caries and sound occlusal surfaces (1/4 of the sample, control) were selected. DIAGNOdent (KaVo Dental Corporation, Lake Zurich, IL, USA) readings were obtained according to manufacturer instructions. Caries was removed with 1/4 round burs in high speed. The volume of tooth preparation was measured using a surrogate measure based on the amount of composite needed to fill the preparations. Sensitivity and specificity using different cutoff values were calculated for lesions/preparations extending into dentin. The results were analyzed statistically.
Results:
The Pearson correlation for preparation volume and DIAGNOdent reading measurements was low (r = 0.285). Sensitivity and specificity of DIAGNOdent for detection of dentinal lesions were 0.83 and 0.60, and 0.66 and 0.73 for the cutoff values of 20 and 30, respectively.
Conclusions:
Within the limitations of this study, laser fluorescence measured with DIAGNOdent does not correlate well with extent of carious tooth structure in incipient occlusal caries.
Clinical Significance:
Clinicians should not rely only on DIAGNOdent readings to determine the extension of incipient occlusal caries.
