Effect of ethylene oxide sterilization on enamel and dentin demineralization in vitro

Thomas, Renske Z.; Ruben, Jan L.; ten Bosch, Jaap J.; Huysmans, Marie-Charlotte D.N.J.M.

doi:10.1016/j.jdent.2007.03.002

« Previous Next »Journal of Dentistry
Volume 35, Issue 7 , Pages 547-551, July 2007

Effect of ethylene oxide sterilization on enamel and dentin demineralization in vitro

Renske Z. Thomas
- Department of Dentistry and Dental Hygiene, University Medical Centre Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Corresponding author at: Department of Dentistry and Dental Hygiene, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University Medical Centre Groningen, University of Groningen, Ant. Deusinglaan 1, 9713 AV Groningen, The Netherlands. Tel.: +31 50 363 2686; fax: +31 50 363 2696.
Jan L. Ruben
- Department of Dentistry and Dental Hygiene, University Medical Centre Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
Jaap J. ten Bosch
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University Medical Centre Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
Marie-Charlotte D.N.J.M. Huysmans
- Department of Dentistry and Dental Hygiene, University Medical Centre Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands

Received 8 December 2006; received in revised form 7 March 2007; accepted 11 March 2007.

Abstract

For in situ studies into caries prevention, sterilization of tooth samples is essential. However, sterilization may influence the caries process itself. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of sterilising sound human enamel and dentin with ethylene oxide on lesion depth and mineral loss before and after in vitro demineralization. Lesion depth and mineral loss were measured using transversal microradiography (TMR). The experiment was carried out with 32 enamel and 32 dentin samples. We found a significant reduction of lesion depth due to sterilization in demineralized enamel (−9.8μm; 95% CI: −15.1 to −4.4μm). The small effect of sterilization on demineralized enamel is considered to be irrelevant for in situ studies of de- and remineralization.