[A study on the application of Ga-As semiconductor laser to endodontics. The effects of laser irradiation on the activation of inflammatory cells and the vital pulpotomy].

The effects of laser irradiation on the activation of macrophage and fibroblast were examined by determining the rate of glucose utilization into the cell and the activity of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in culture supernatant. The laser irradiated macrophages that had been prepared from the peritoneal exudate cells, did not show any enhancement of activity, whereas fibroblast cell line (Gin 1 cell) were activated by laser irradiation. These findings suggest that laser irradiation was effective for the growth of fibroblast and induced suppressive effects for macrophage. In addition, effects of laser irradiation on the vital pulpotomy were investigated. It was observed that laser irradiation induced enhancement of calcification in wound surface and stimulated formation of calcified tissue. These observations indicate that laser irradiation is a useful method for the vital pulpotomy.