CARIES PREVENTION: RECENT ADVANCES AND THE FUTURE PROSPECTS

Key words: Dental caries, Dental plaque, Fluoride

Dental caries is a progressive, localized demineralization and dissolution of hard dental tissue that occurs underneath a bacterial layer (dental plaque) adherent to enamel surfaces. Acid metabolites released by plaque bacteria during fermentation of dietary carbohydrates lower the surface pH, which falls under the critical value for enamel, starting the dissolution of the tissue. In most cases, the word “dental caries” is used as a synonym of carious cavity. Nevertheless it must be noted that carious cavity does not represent the disease itself, that is primarily a microbial imbalance of dental plaque ecosystem. On this basis the paper reviews the most recent acquisition of caries prevention, particularly in the fields of oral microbiology, fluoride biochemistry and development of new restorative materials. Clinical applications and operative protocols are also discussed.