Management of Deep Caries Flashcards
Outline the basic treatment plan for a patient with deep caries
- Provide emergency relief of pain
- Establish a healthy oral environment by doing a diet diary, giving OHI do some scaling. Basically trying to stabilise the caries
- Corrective therapy to repair the effects of the disease
- Replace any missing teeth
What is caries?
A disease of the hard tissues of the teeth characterised by the demineralisation and proteolytic destruction of the tissues by acids produced by bacteria in dental plaque feeding on dietary carbohydrates
How would you establish a healthy oral environment
- Diet diary
- Plaque free score
- OHI
- Scaling
- Caries stabilisation
What treatments are part of corrective therapy
- Permanent restoartions
- RSD
- endodontic treatment
- Crowns
Name the 4 basic parts of a tooth
- Enamel
- Dentine
- Pup
- Cementum
What can you find within the pulp
- Odontoblast
- Blood vessels
- Nerves
- Lymphatic system
- Stem cells
- Connective tissue
What do odontoblasts do?
They produce dentine
Name the 2 main nerves found in the pulp
- A alpha
2. C fibres
Describe a alpha nerves
- Are Myelinated
- Give a short sharp pain
- Fast response
Describe C fibres
- Unmyelinated
- Have a slow response time
- Dull throbbing ache
What type of tooth pain are alpha fibres responsible for?
Tooth sensitivity
What can a build up bacteria cause?
- Gingivitis
- Periodontitis
- Caries
Which type of bacteria cause caries?
Cariogenic bacteria
What lactic acid cause on the tooth?
Demineralisation
Name the first stage of caries formation
White spot lesion
Are white spot lesions treatable?
Yes they are the first sign of demineralisation
It is reversible with good oral hygiene
IF white spot lesions aren’t treated what can happen?
Brown spot lesions can form
When do brown spot lesions from
Repeated demineralisation and remineralisation can lead to pigments from blood / food being incorporated into the enamel
What changes are going through the pulp when white or brown spot lesions form?
- Arterial flow in the pulp increases
- Peritubular dentine gets laid down
- Affected odontoblasts produce tertiary dentine
What effect does increased arterial flow in the pulp have?
Causes an increase in the rate of flow of dentinal tubular fluid
The fluid acts to flu out bacterial toxins
Also caries anti-bacterial components (IgG, lactoferrin etc)
What effect does peritubular dentine getting laid down have on the tooth?
aMake the tubules narrower reducing the flow of fluid and also creating a barrier to bacteria
What happens if a white spot lesion isn’t treated?
- Further dentine is laid down to protect the pulp
- Cavitation may occur due to undermined enamel
- Caries start to spread lateral at the ADJ