Is It Possible to induce Artificial Caries-affected Dentin using the Same Protocol to Primary and Permanent Teeth?

Area of Science:

• Dental research
• Caries research
• Mineral loss analysis

Background:

• Dentin caries affects both primary and permanent teeth.
• Understanding mineral loss in caries-affected dentin is crucial for treatment.
• Simulating natural caries lesions in vitro is essential for research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare mineral loss in natural vs. artificially created caries-affected dentin.
• To evaluate the efficacy of a pH-cycling model in simulating dentin caries.
• To assess differences in mineral loss between primary and permanent teeth.

Main Methods:

• In vitro study comparing natural and pH-cycled caries-affected dentin.
• Used 20 natural caries molars (10 primary, 10 permanent) and 20 sound molars (10 primary, 10 permanent).
• Prepared cavities in sound teeth and subjected to 14-day pH-cycling; measured Knoop micro-hardness (KHN).

Main Results:

• No statistically significant difference in mineral loss between natural (control) and pH-cycled (experimental) dentin.
• Mineral loss values were comparable between primary and permanent teeth in both groups.
• Control groups: PriC = 30.9 ± 6.4, PermC = 40.8 ± 8.6. Experimental groups: PripH = 27.3 ± 11.1, PermpH = 35.5 ± 14.0.

Conclusions:

• Artificially created caries-affected dentin exhibits similar mineral loss to naturally occurring lesions.
• The pH-cycling model is a suitable in vitro method for simulating caries-affected dentin in both primary and permanent teeth.
• Findings support the use of pH-cycling models in dental caries research.