Combined effects of argon laser irradiation and fluoride treatments in prevention of caries-like lesion formation in enamel: an in vitro study.

The sample of this study consisted of 10 human permanent molars, which were sectioned into tooth quarters using slow speed diamond saw (Isomet), then a quarter from each tooth was assigned to one of four treatment groups: A) control (no treatment); B) argon laser only; C) argon laser plus neutral sodium fluoride for 4 minutes; D) argon laser with zinc fluoride for 4 minutes; each tooth quarter was coated with acid resistant varnish, leaving a window of 2 mm x 3 mm of sound enamel exposed. The results were that teeth treated with argon laser and then with zinc fluoride for four minutes have significantly reduced white spotting or etching. Zinc fluoride and argon laser combination are particularly effective in compensating for carbonate inclusion. It has a property of stabilizing hydroxyapetite crystal and restoring the structural defects of this crystal. Caries detection dye is a reliable diagnostic tool for white spot lesions. It reduces the false positive and false negative results by 60%, when compared with visual 16x magnification.