By LEE BOWMAN
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
We worry about too little ozone in the atmosphere's upper reaches, and too much of it closer to the ground. But it's a gas when it comes to treating tooth decay.
Dentists in Europe and Canada have been using ozone treatments for several years now. But the first clinical trials of the process in the United States are just getting under way, so don't look for this alternative to the drill for a few more years.
The technique was developed by a team led by Edward Lynch of the Royal Victoria Hospital's School of Dentistry in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Dentistry evolved from mainly pulling teeth to removing decayed portions through drilling and patching teeth with fillings in the 19th and 20th centuries. Other advances in the field have involved largely preventive treatments such as fluoride or plastic sealants to ward off decay.
The trouble is, as people eventually discover, fillings don't last forever, and when they fail, more drilling and filling are needed to fix the damage.
Lynch and colleagues spent years experimenting with ways to decisively halt tooth decay in a cavity in a short time. They eventually settled on the triple-oxygen-molecule ozone, which already is used for medical sterilization and sanitizing.
Even a relatively small amount of ozone can harm the lungs, so the dose is delivered using a sealed rubber cap that contains and then vacuums away the ozone after 20 to 60 seconds.
That's enough time, tests in Britain have found, to eliminate 99 percent of decay-causing bacteria in a cavity. Next, patients use a re-mineralizing rinse that _ along with saliva, which is naturally rich in calcium phosphates _ gives a modest pit in a tooth a chance to heal. Rinses containing fluoride and other anti-decay products are part of the package.
If the hole's too deep, or in a spot where an obvious hole in a tooth is unattractive, a cosmetic filling can still be applied, but theoretically with little or no drilling required.
Other dental researchers have been working with ozone-enhanced oils that can be applied with a swab or needle into a root area or stub of a tooth before it's capped or an implant set, to help prevent future decay beneath.
Proponents say that not only is this treatment virtually pain-free, but that it also eliminates the noise, smell and general distaste of dental drilling.
The treatments generally are less costly than a conventional filling in Britain. However, Lynch recommends that they be continued every six months or so, and that the procedure be done, like a cleaning, as part of routine preventive care.
"Children will never need fillings" if they stay with the treatment, he says.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration still needs to be convinced the treatments are safe and effective. The manufacturer of the system, CurOzone USA, has provided a grant of about $1.5 million to have the process tested on several hundred patients at three dental schools around the country over the next 18 months.
Once the treatments are approved for general use in the United States, expect to see them initially at boutique dental practices _ those that "cater to cowards" but also demand top dollar from patients.
Widespread dental-insurance coverage for the new method is still unlikely to happen for several years, until more studies can show that the treatments can be cost effective in the long run.
On the Net: www.curozone.com
