Valoración del grado de pérdida de estructura dentaria producida con un sistema de pulido radicular por aire a presión y cuatro diferentes polvos abrasivos

Abstract

Purpose: To assess the dental tissue loss produced by the tooth polishing system Prophy-Jet using four different powders with different degree of abrasiveness, considering sodium bicarbonate as the standard control. Methods and Materials: 120 extracted teeth were randomly distributed to be polished by means of the Prophy-Jet system and one of the four abrasivenesses used: sodium bicarbonate, calcium sulphate, calcium carbonate and a combination of calcium sulphate and calcium carbonate. Once polished, these specimens were assessed by means of scanning electron microscopy, where the degree of tooth substance loss was evaluated through a semi-quantitative scale. Results and Discussion: We have observed a significantly higher tooth structure elimination with the use of sodium bicarbonate as abrasive, when compared with the use of calcium sulphate and the combination sulphate-carbonate. However, no significant differences were found between sodium bicarbonate and calcium carbonate. The least tooth surface abrasion was obtained with the use of calcium sulphate. The results from this in vitro investigation clearly show that this tooth polishing system can be destructive depending on the abrasive powder used.