Authors: Hodson, Nicholas A.; Dunne, Stephen M.; Pankhurst, Caroline L.

Source: Primary Dental Care, Volume 12, Number 2, April 2005 , pp. 61-67(7)

Publisher: Faculty of General Dental Practice (UK)

Abstract:

Aim: Dental curing lights are vulnerable to contamination with oral fluids during routine intra-oral use. This controlled study aimed to evaluate whether or not disposable transparent barriers placed over the light-guide tip would affect light output intensity or the subsequent depth of cure of a composite restoration.

Methods: The impact on light intensity emitted from high-, medium- and low-output light-cure units in the presence of two commercially available disposable infection-control barriers was evaluated against a no-barrier control. Power density measurements from the three intensity light-cure units were recorded with a radiometer, then converted to a digital image using an intra-oral camera and values determined using a commercial computer program. For each curing unit, the measurements were repeated on ten separate occasions with each barrier and the control. Depth of cure was evaluated using a scrape test in a natural tooth model.

Results: At each level of light output, the two disposable barriers produced a significant reduction in the mean power density readings compared to the no-barrier control (P<0.005). The cure sleeve inhibited light output to a greater extent than either the cling film or the control (P<0.005). Only composite restorations light-activated by the high level unit demonstrated a small but significant decrease in the depth of cure compared to the control (P<0.05).

Conclusion: Placing disposable barriers over the light-guide tip reduced the light intensity from all three curing lights. There was no impact on depth of cure except for the high-output light, where a small decrease in cure depth was noted but this was not considered clinically significant. Disposable barriers can be recommended for use with light-cure lights.

Keywords: DENTAL CURING LIGHT; DENTAL EQUIPMENT; INFECTION CONTROL; COMPOSITE RESIN; DEPTH OF CURE

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1308/1355761053695149

Affiliations: 1: Clinical Lecturer in the Department of Primary Dental Care. GKT Dental Institute, London, UK.

Publication date: 2005-04-01

More about this publication?

• Primary Dental Care is the research journal of the Faculty of General Dental Practice (UK), and the only peer-reviewed journal dedicated wholly to research in primary care dentistry. The aim of the journal is to promote academic and research aspects of primary dental care by publishing relevant peer-reviewed papers. In addition, reviews, reports of clinical cases, book reviews, opinions, summaries and abstracts of scientific meetings and news items are included.

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