Clinical Reversal of Occlusal Pit and Fissure Caries After Using Ozone.

T.DALY1 and E. LYNCH2 ( 1 49 Kingsway, Dovercourt, Harwich, CO12 3JT, UK , 2 Health and Health Care Research Group, Queen's University Belfast, Northern Ireland)

Ozone has been shown to clinically reverse primary root carious lesions and early occlusal pit and fissure caries. This study aimed to assess the use of Ozone to manage pit and fissure caries in a general dental practice.

Objectives: This study assessed the effect of a novel ozone delivery system1 on primary pit and fissure carious lesions over a 10 week period in a general dental practice.

Methods: 58 subjects were randomly allocated to one of 2 groups. 29 patients were entered with 29 carious lesions whilst another 29 subjects were entered with 29 control lesions, which did not receive any treatment. Each carious lesion had been deemed to require conventional drilling and filling. Ozone was applied to each test lesion for 30 seconds. After 10 weeks, patients were recalled and the lesions were clinically re-assessed for severity.

Results: There were no observed adverse events. 18 of the ozone treated primary pit and fissure carious lesions had clinically reversed based on the clinical measurement of lesion severity whilst 7 other lesions remained stable and 4 became worse (P<0.05). The control lesions did not significantly change clinically.

Conclusions: This treatment regime using ozone may be considered to be an effective alternative to conventional "drilling and filling" for primary occlusal fissure carious lesions in general dental practice. 1 HealOzone unit, CurOzone USA.