Keynote Lecture: Risk Factors for Dental Erosions

Dental erosions are caused by the attack of an acidic solution, which is undersaturated with respect to hydroxyapatite. This means that not only the pH or amount of titrable acid is responsible for the erosive capacity of a solution, but also the concentration of minerals in the liquid, such as calcium and phosphor. Additionally special properties of the solution, like viscosity, flow behaviour, flow velocity and wettability play a crucial role determining the erosive potential of a liquid. On the other hand, frequency of tooth-acid contact, duration of the contact, status of fluoridation, presence or absence of the salivary acquired pellicle may also have an impact on the erosively induced destructive process of dental hard tissues. Furthermore, some properties of the saliva, such as flow rate and buffer capacity are involved in the development of dental erosions in the oral cavity. This numeration shows that a bundle of different impacts are involved in the development of dental erosions, classifying this disease as multifactorially induced. The lecture intends to discuss these various influences on and risk factors for dental erosions in the light of the current literature.