Researchers at the University of Washington have shown that a dental tool they created can measure the acidity built up by the bacteria in plaque that leads to cavities.
The O-pH system is a prototype optical device that emits an LED light and measures the reactions of that light, the fluorescence, with an FDA-approved chemical dye applied to teeth. The O-pH then produces a numerical reading of the pH, or acidity, of the plaque covering those teeth. Knowing how acidic the plaque is can tell dentists and patients what area of a tooth is most at risk of developing a cavity.
Plaque produces acid when the bacteria interacts with the sugar in the food. The acid is what causes the corrosion of the tooth surface and eventually cavities. By capturing information about the acidic activity, we can get an idea of how bacteria are growing in the dental biofilm, or plaque! To test their device, the researchers recruited 30 patients aged 10-18 years old in the UW School of Dentistry's Center for Pediatric Dentistry. The researchers chose kids for their study in large part because the enamel on kids' teeth is much thinner than that of adults, so getting early warning of acid erosion is even more important. While the dye is applied to the teeth, at the end of a length of cord is the probe that transmits and collects light while hovering over the surface of a tooth. The collected light travels back to a central box that provides a pH reading. The conditions on the patients' teeth were read several times before and after sugar rinses and other condition changes, such as pre- and post-professional dental cleaning to look for high acid production areas where the enamel is getting demineralized.
For more information, read the article below!
https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/ielx7/10/4359967/09720240.pdf?tp=&arnumber=9720240&isnumber=4359967&ref=aHR0cHM6Ly9pZWVleHBsb3JlLmllZWUub3JnL2RvY3VtZW50Lzk3MjAyNDA=
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