Comparison of laser fluorescence devices for detection of caries in primary teeth.

The aim of this in vivo study was to evaluate the performance of fluorescence-based devices in detecting occlusal caries lesions in primary molars compared with conventional methods. Two examiners assessed 44 occlusal surfaces of first and second primary molars in 20 patients using two fluorescence devices: DIAGNOdent (LF) and DIAGNOdent pen (LFpen). Teeth were also assessed by visual examination and bitewing radiograph. Histological examination served as the gold standard after extraction. By using the McNemar test, the sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and area under the receiver operating curve were calculated as outer enamel (D1), inner enamel (D2) and dentine caries (D3) lesion thresholds. The intra- and inter-examiner reproducibility were calculated using the Cohen's unweighted kappa statistics. At the D1 threshold, the LFpen sensitivity was statistically higher than LF and radiographic examination (P < 0.001), whereas there was no statistically significant difference among the groups at the D2 and D3 thresholds (P > 0.05). All methods demonstrated the highest sensitivity values at D3. At the D1 and D2 thresholds, there were no significant differences between the LFpen specificity and the other methods. All methods presented similar performance in detecting all lesions considering the area under the receiver operating curve. The LFpen showed better performance than LF. Furthermore, visual examination and the LFpen device seem to be sufficient for detection of occlusal caries in primary molars.

Antibacterial effect of a new haemostatic agent on oral microorganisms.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine the antibacterial effect of a newly developed haemostatic agent Ankaferd Blood Stopper® (ABS) and Ferric Sulphate (FS) on various oral microorganisms. STUDY DESIGN: Bacterial strains were freshly incubated in their specific broth media. For each of the strains, 3 wells per each agent, with a 5 mm diameter were made under aseptic conditions in the specific agar media. Then they were filled with a test agents or 0.2% chlorhexidine digluconate (CHX) (control group). After 24h and 48h incubation periods, inhibition zones were measured. RESULTS: ABS showed antibacterial effect on all test microorganisms except Lactobacillus acidophilus and Lactobacillus salivarius. Ferric sulphate and CHX have antibacterial effect on all microorganisms. When the test agents compared, the inhibition zones of the ABS were found smaller than the ferric sulphate and CHX. CONCLUSIONS: Although ferric sulphate and ABS have antibacterial effect, ferric sulphate had better antibacterial activity than ABS on oral microorganisms under in vitro condition. FS and ABS not only exhibit the haemostatic activity but also antimicrobial activity. Key words:Ankaferd blood stopper, ferric sulphate, haemostatic agent, haemostasia, bleeding, bactericide.

Short-term antimicrobial properties of mineral trioxide aggregate with incorporated silver-zeolite.

The purpose of this in vitro study was to determine whether adding silver-zeolite (SZ) to mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) would enhance the antimicrobial activity of MTA against Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC #25923), Enterococcus faecalis (ATCC #29212), Escherichia coli (ATCC#25922), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC #27853), Candida albicans (ATCC #90028), Porphyromonas gingivalis (ATCC #33277), Actinomyces israelii (ATCC #12102), and Prevotella intermedia (ATCC# 15032). SZ was added at 0.2% and 2% mass fraction concentration to MTA powder. The control group was MTA powder with no SZ. The antimicrobial effect test was accomplished by placing freshly mixed MTA specimens on agar plates inoculated with microorganisms and comparing the zones of inhibition at 24, 48, and 72 h. The amounts of silver ion release from MTA specimens were measured with atomic absorption spectrophotometry at 10-min, 24-, 48-, and 72-h periods. The pH of MTA specimens was measured with a pH meter at 10-min, 24-, 48-, and 72-h periods. MTA with 2% and 0.2% SZ specimens showed inhibitory effects on some microorganisms at all time periods, whereas no antimicrobial activity showed for P. intermedia and A. israelii. MTA without SZ inhibited C. albicans, E. Coli, and P. intermedia. The highest silver release was detected in 2% SZ MTA at 24 h. The incorporation of SZ may enhance the antimicrobial activity of MTA.

Cytotoxicity of a new hemostatic agent on human pulp fibroblasts in vitro.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to evaluate the cytotoxicity of the plant extract ankaferd blood stopper (ABS) in vitro. STUDY DESIGN: ABS was eluted with fresh Dulbecco's Modified Eagle's Medium (DMEM) without serum for 72 h, at 37 °C. The cells treated with various dilutions of ABS were seeded into 96-well microplate at 104/well in triplicates. Cells without treatment served as a control group. The number of viable cells after 48 h incubation was determined by a modified 3-(4, 5-dimethyl-thiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyl-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. The relative viability of pulp cells was expressed as color intensity of the number in the experimental wells relative to that of the control group. Absorbances were read at 570 nm on a microplate reader with a background subtraction at 620 nm. RESULT: The results showed that ABS was cytotoxic to human pulp fibroblasts by MTT assay. CONCLUSIONS: The influence of cytotoxicity to human pulp fibroblasts depended on concentration of ABS. The more dilutions exhibited less cytotoxic characteristics compared to the more concentrated forms.

Clinical and radiographic outcomes of calcium hydroxide and formocresol pulpotomies performed by dental students.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to compare the clinical and radiographic success rates of 3 pulpotomy techniques: formocresol, calcium hydroxide, and calcium hydroxide/iodoform. STUDY DESIGN: The pulpotomies were performed by fifth-year undergraduate dental students. Members of senior staff at the clinics supervised all of the procedures. Informed consent was obtained from each child's parents. The teeth were randomly assigned to the experimental (calcium hydroxide and calcium hydroxide/iodoform) or control (formocresol) groups. After coronal pulp removal and hemostasis, remaining pulp tissue was covered with calcium hydroxide or calcium hydroxide/iodoform paste in the experimental groups. In the control group, formocresol was placed with a cotton pellet over the pulp tissue for 5 minutes and removed; the pulp tissue was then covered with zinc oxide-eugenol. All teeth were restored with stainless-steel crowns. Clinical and radiographic successes and failures were recorded at 1-, 3-, 6-, and 12-month follow-ups by the authors. Data were statistically analyzed using chi-squared tests. RESULTS: The follow-up evaluations revealed that the clinical success rates were 89.7% for formocresol, 33.3% for calcium hydroxide, and 17.2% for calcium hydroxide/iodoform. The radiographic success rates were 89.7% for formocresol, 33.3% for calcium hydroxide, and 13.8% for calcium hydroxide/iodoform. CONCLUSIONS: Formocresol was superior to calcium hydroxide and calcium hydroxide/iodoform pastes for primary molar pulpotomies. Internal resorption was the most common radiographic failure in all 3 pulpotomy techniques.