DT News - UK - Brummy scientists bubble over breakthrough in scaler research

Dental Tribune International

Thu. 10 March 2016

save

BIRMINGHAM, UK: Modern high-speed imaging is increasingly being used by science to visualise processes that are too fast for the human eye to detect. Using the method, researchers from the University of Birmingham’s School of Dentistry have now fully revealed the forces at play at the end of an ultrasonic scaler that is commonly used by dentists to clean teeth.

By recording a scaler operating under the microscope at 10,000 times the speed of regular filming, they found tiny water bubbles forming at the end of the scaler, a process known as cavitation. According to them, the area of cavitation near the free end of the tips increased with greater power and with the amplitudes of displacement at the tips.

Already observed in irrigation processes in endodontics, the formation and collapse of water bubbles create significant forces that could disrupt biofilm without touching the tooth’s surface, paving the way for new instrument designs that are less invasive, the researchers said in the paper.

“Other studies we have done, using electron microscopy, have shown that removal of plaque biofilm is increased when cavitation is increased. Putting the pieces together, we can therefore say that altering the shape and power of these commonly used tools make them more effective, and hopefully, pain-free,” commented recent PhD graduate and lead author of the paper Nina Vyas on the results.

School of Dentistry Professor Damien Walmsley added, “Removing dental plaque and calculus, that is the build-up of what we know as tartar or hard plaque, is a big part of maintaining oral health and a regular occurrence in dental check-ups. These findings will help us to understand how to make the tools as effective as possible.”

For the study, a Satelec P5 Newtron Scaler with Satelec tips 10P, 1 and 2 operating at medium and high speeds was recorded at up to 250,000 frames per second in a water tank. The tip displacement was then recorded using scanning laser vibrometry. It is the first time that both methods have been applied to study cavitation around ultrasonic scalers.

The study, titled "High speed imaging of cavitation around dental ultrasonic scaler tips," was published online on 2 March in the PLOS One journal.

To post a reply please login or register

Scientists uncover gene that enhances tissue regeneration in tooth healing

PLYMOUTH, UK: The usefulness of stem cells in the regeneration of dental and other body tissue has been established by numerous studies, though their ...

New research reveals the role of preventive oral care in the UK

WEYBRIDGE, UK: Haleon, a British multinational consumer healthcare company, and the College of General Dentistry have recently conducted a survey that ...

Dentist in large-scale fraud case sentenced to three years

LONDON, UK: Over the last seventeen years, a dentist from North London has claimed almost £780,000 from the National Health Service for dental ...

Scientists present findings on implant stability at Osstell symposium

DUBLIN, Ireland: In conjunction with the 2013 Annual Scientific Meeting of the European Association for Osseointegration (EAO), Osstell, a Swedish ...

Research finds tooth enamel fast track in humans

CANTERBURY, UK: New research conducted at the University of Kent in Canterbury has discovered a link between prenatal enamel growth rates of teeth and ...

Research on pufferfish could lead to addressing tooth loss in humans

SHEFFIELD, UK: According to new research by an international team of scientists, human teeth evolved from the same genes that form the characteristic beaked...

Ancient fish scales and vertebrate teeth share an embryonic origin

CAMBRIDGE, UK: Two new studies focusing on the evolutionary origin of teeth and of vertebra have provided further evidence of the human connection to marine...

EssenSeal: A new-generation root canal sealer

VEVEY, Switzerland: Introduced by Swiss endodontic company Produits Dentaires (PD) at the 2019 International Dental Show, EssenSeal is an innovative sealer ...

Dentists in Scotland voice concerns over expired personal protective equipment

LONDON, UK: Dentists in Scotland have recently voiced their concerns over receiving stocks of free expired personal protective equipment (PPE). Since the ...