Review on Theobromine: An Alternative to Fluorides in Treating Dentinal Hypersensitivity

Theobromine is a unique constituent that can help dentistry and general health in the future. The generic name of theobroma is obtained from two Greek words i.e., Theo and Broma, which means “food of the gods". It can be found in cocoa beans and chocolates. Theodent toothpaste harness the power of cocoa. Rennou, the main component in Theodent, is a unique compound that combines theobromine, calcium, and phosphate to enhance enamel remineralization. This article is to review the effectiveness of theobromine in blocking dentinal tubules by preventing dentinal hypersensitivity, and its positive effects on general health. Various researches and valid documents were reviewed by us. Several studies have been conducted that shows theobromine is effective in blocking dentinal tubules, thus preventing dentinal hypersensitivity as well as tooth demineralization. It also has other general health benefits. Because of its potent vasodilation, diuretic and heart stimulant effect, theobromine can also be used in treating high blood pressure. It also aids in opening of airways and helps in preventing kidney stones. The use of fluoride dentifrices is debatable, as it has many detrimental effects. Also, we consider that theobromine if used as a component in dentifrices, if unintentionally swallowed, cause no catastrophic effects.

The passive properties of TA10 in Coca-Cola containing oral environment

Purpose At present, carbonated drinks such as cola are especially favored by the younger generation. But because of its acid, it often leads to tooth demineralization, resulting in “cola tooth”. However, the influence of cola on the corrosion resistance of passive film of TiA10 alloy restorative materials is rarely reported. The purpose of this study was to analysis the corrosion resistance, composition of the passive film of TA10 alloy in different concentrations of Cola. Design/methodology/approach The passive behavior of TA10 alloy in artificial saliva (AS) and Cola was studied by means of potentiodynamic polarization, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry, Mott-Schottky techniques and combined with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) surface analysis. Findings With the increase of cola content, the self-corrosion current density of the alloy increases sharply, and the corrosion resistance of the passive film is the best in AS, while Rp in cola is reduced to half of that in AS. The thickness of the passive film in AS, AS +cola and cola is about 9.5 nm, 7.5 nm and 6 nm, respectively. The passive film in cola has more defects and the carrier density is 1.55 times as high as that in AS. Cola can weaken the formation process of the protected oxide, promote the formation of high valence Ti-oxides and increase the content of Mo-oxides in the passive film. Originality/value These results have important guiding significance for the safe use of the alloy in the complex oral environments.

THE EFFECT OF PEAT SWAMP WATER ON TOOTH DEMINERALIZATION OF COPPER AND SELENIUM ION

ABSTRACTBackground: The society of South Kalimantan has high rate of tooth decay. The high rate of tooth decay in South Kalimantan is caused by environmental factors, namely water sources originating from peat swamp. Swamp water has acidic pH can make tooth demineralization or releasing minerals in tooth. One of the minerals that can be demineralized by swamp water is copper ions (Cu2+) and selenium ions (Se4+). The released minerals in tooth makes tooth enamel slowly dissolve and make tooth more susceptible to caries. Objective: to analyze the effect of tooth immersion on peat swamp water on releasing copper and selenium ions. Methods: This research used a laboratory experimental study with eighteen specimens of extracted human maxillary premolar teeth. The specimens were divided into 2 treatment groups ie tap (PDAM) water and peat swamp water immersion, and 1 control group ie artificial saliva immersion. Tooth immersion is conducted for 7 days. The Measurement of copper and selenium ions release using a UV-Vis spectrophotometer. Data were statistically tested using One Way Anova. Result: The mean value of released copper ions in artificial saliva (3.8 ± 0.51 ppm), tap water (3.72 ± 1.02 ppm) and peat swamp water (3.37 ± 0.97 ppm) showed there were no significant differences among all immersion groups. Meanwhile, the mean value of released selenium ions in artificial saliva (7.61 ± 2.34 ppm), tap water (2.4 ± 0.62 ppm) and peat swamp water (0.85 ± 0,38 ppm) showed there were significant differences among all immersion groups on the release of selenium ions, subsequenty test using Post hoc Dunnett's T3 showed p=0.0001 (p<0.05). Conclusion: There is no effect of tooth immersion in peat swamp water on the release of copper ions however there is an effect on the release of selenium ions.Keywords: Demineralization, Peat swamp water, Releasing copper ions (Cu2+), Releasing selenium ions (Se4+), tooth decay.

Diagnostics of non-carious lesions of dental hard tissues with the methods of optical spectroscopy and radiography

Objective: This work aims to use new spectroscopic and radiographic methods to study the dental hard tissue erosion and abfraction, as these lesions are actually quite difficult to be diagnosed in clinical practice. Material and Methods: This in vivo study was conducted on 60 patients with early erosion and 60 patients with abfraction at the cervical area by means of laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) and multilayer spiral computed tomography (MSCT). Results: In comparative dental hard tissues studies LIF spectra from intact and affected areas, it was noted multidirectional fluorescence intensity dependence between areas affected by abfraction and intact areas. MSCT technique allowed assessing the degree of damaged areas, especially at deeper stages. Conclusion: Although LIF and MSCT methods presented limitations, it was shown their effectiveness in the diagnosis of abfraction and erosion by detecting changes in the morphological structure as well as in the chemical and mineral composition of affected dental hard tissues. So LIF and MSCT methods can be successfully used in order to develop new medical devices which will provide most accurate clinical diagnose of different stages of dental erosion and abfraction.KEYWORDSFluorescence spectroscopy; Spiral computed tomography; Tooth demineralization; Tooth erosion.

Early detection of enamel demineralization by optical coherence tomography

Enamel is the outermost layer of the tooth that protects it from invasion. In general, an acidic environment accelerates tooth demineralization, leading to the formation of cavities. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is conventionally used as an in vitro tool for the observation of tooth morphology changes with acid attacks. Yet, SEM has intrinsic limitations for the potential application of in vivo detection in the early demineralization process. In this study, a high-resolution optical coherence tomography (OCT) system with the axial and transverse resolutions of 2.0 and 2.7 μm in teeth has been utilized for characterizing the effect of the acidic environment (simulated by phosphoric acid) on the enamel topology. The scattering coefficient and the surface roughness of enamel can be directly derived from the OCT results, enabling a quantitative evaluation of the topology changes with demineralization. The dynamic process induced by the acid application is also recorded and analyzed with OCT, depicting the evolution of the demineralization process on enamel. Notably, the estimated enamel scattering coefficient and surface roughness significantly increase with the application time of acid and the results illustrate that the values of both parameters after demineralization are significantly larger than those obtained before the demineralization, illustrating both parameters could be effective to differentiate the healthy and demineralized teeth and determine the severity. The obtained results unambiguously illustrate that demineralization of the tooth surface can be successfully detected by OCT and further used as an indicator of early-stage cavity formation.

An electrospun fibrous platform for visualizing the critical pH point inducing tooth demineralization

The BCG–PS/PVP electrospun fibrous membrane can rapidly, sensitively and conveniently sense the critical pH point of 5.5 of dental caries.

Effectiveness of S-PRG Filler-Containing Toothpaste in Inhibiting Demineralization of Human Tooth Surface

Objectives: Using an established pH-cycling caries model, the authors evaluated the effectiveness of toothpastes containing Surface Pre-reacted Glass-ionomer filler (S-PRG) in preventing tooth surface demineralization. Materials and Methods: 210 tooth blocks were randomly assigned to seven experimental groups (30 blocks/group): no treatment (A), and toothpaste containing either NaF (B), 0 wt% S-PRG (C), 1 wt% S-PRG (D), 5 wt% S-PRG (E), 20 wt% S-PRG (F) or 30 wt% S-PRG (G). Groups were subjected to 14-day demineralization for development of early caries lesions using a pH-cycling caries model. Demineralization was assessed using Quantitative Light-induced Fluorescence (QLF) and Transverse Microradiography (TMR). All pairwise contrasts (between treatments) were tested using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), and then Tukey’s HSD for multiple comparisons. All p-values are considered significant if <0.05. Results: With QLF, there was a significant (ANOVA; p<0.001) difference in mean percent fluorescence loss (∆F) observed among the groups. Relative to control, all S-PRG-containing toothpastes significantly (Tukey’s; p<0.0001) inhibited demineralization at varying percentages (48.6%, 61.3%, 67.4% and 69.8% reduction with S-PRG 1%, 5%, 20% and 30% respectively). Demineralization reduction was not significant with either NaF (15.6% reduction) or 0% S-PRG (-2.5% reduction i.e. 2.5% more demineralization than the Control) when compared to control group. Mineral loss assessed using TMR followed a similar trend as fluorescence loss. Conclusion: Toothpaste containing S-PRG filler can serve as an effective caries control tool. S-PRG filler-containing dentifrice to be more effective in preventing tooth demineralization than 1100 ppm fluoride provided as sodium fluoride.