A pilot study on the detection of proximal caries in permanent anterior human teeth using lateral short-wave infrared...

This pilot study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic performance of short-wave infrared transillumination at 1300 nm for detecting proximal caries lesions in permanent anterior teeth, compared with digital radiography.

Seventeen extracted human permanent anterior teeth were examined using short-wave infrared transillumination from both labial and oral directions. Images were acquired using a 1300-nm light-emitting diode and a short-wave infrared camera. Radiographs were obtained using a standard digital radiography setup. Micro-CT served as the reference standard. Two calibrated examiners independently assessed the presence or absence of caries lesions. Statistical analysis included sensitivity, specificity and overall accuracy. Inter-examiner agreement was assessed using kappa statistics.

Proximal surfaces were analysed. Short-wave infrared transillumination demonstrated higher diagnostic accuracy from oral (86%), labial (79%), and combined (90%) views compared to radiography (66%). The combined approach yielded a sensitivity of 86% and a specificity of 93%. In contrast, radiography achieved a sensitivity of 29% and a specificity of 100%. Inter-examiner agreement was substantial to almost perfect for all methods.

This pilot study shows that short-wave infrared transillumination at 1300 nm provides significantly greater diagnostic accuracy than radiography for detecting proximal caries in anterior teeth and may serve as a radiation-free adjunct in clinical diagnostics.

This is the first pilot study to demonstrate that combining labial and oral short-wave infrared transillumination enables accurate detection of proximal caries in anterior teeth and offers potential as a novel diagnostic tool.