Assessing Early Dental Erosion With Portable Optical Reflectometer: Clinical Study

Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the capability of a portable optical reflectometer in clinically detecting early dental erosion.
Methods: This was a randomized clinical study with a sample of 24 individuals, who were randomly divided into two groups: Control group (individuals who performed a 30-second mouthwash with 30 ml of water) and Erosion group (individuals who performed a 30-second mouthwash with 30 ml of cola-type soda). After professional prophylaxis, the surface reflection intensity of the upper central incisors was analyzed using a device to reposition the equipment. Measurements were taken at the same location before and after the treatments, and again 2 hours after saliva exposure. The relative reflection intensity was calculated, and the data were analyzed using repeated measures ANOVA followed by Tukey’s test (p<0.05).
Results: The device was able to detect a decrease in the refractive index percentage immediately after the cola-type soda mouthwash (65 ± 14) compared to the water mouthwash (102 ± 15) (p<0.05). After 2 hours, the refractive index percentage in the incisors of individuals in the Erosion group (86 ± 17) was similar to that of the Control group (water) (98 ± 20) (p>0.05).
Conclusions: It is concluded that the portable optical reflectometer can clinically detect early dental erosion and may be an important tool for clinical studies on dental erosion.