The ultrastructural topography of the interface between sound and carious dentine after chemomechanical caries removal

Abstract

The effect of caries removal agents on the interface between carious and sound dentine in permanent teeth was investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). Carious lesions in permanent teeth were treated with the caries removal agents N-monochloro-D,L-2-aminobutyric acid (NMAB) and urea containing NMAB. Post-treatment lesions of carious tissue were examined for the ultrastructural topography of the affected dentine using SEM. Some lesions completely free of caries were then restored with resin-modified glass-ionorner and studied with CLSM. Attempts were then made to correlate the SEM and CLSM findings. The caries removal agents were useful in examining the dentine, and CLSM was a practical tool for investigating the bonding with resin-modified glass ionomer restoration. The current study supports the belief that that the inner layer of carious dentine should be preserved during cavity preparation as it has the potential for retention of the filling material and possible remineralization.