Remineralization efficacy of a toothpaste containing 8% arginine and calcium carbonate on enamel surface.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the remineralization efficacy of different types of toothpastes on initial enamel lesions in vitro.


METHODS
Artificial initial lesions were created on 150 enamel discs from freshly extracted bovine incisors. These enamel discs were divided into five groups. The test treatment consisted of undiluted Colgate Sensitive Pro-Relief Toothpaste containing 8.0% arginine, calcium carbonate and 1,450 ppm fluoride that was applied on the enamel surface under a pH-cycling including 4 x 3-minute application daily for 12 days and soaked in remineralizing solution during the untreated periods. The two other test products were commercial products: Crest Cavity Protection Toothpaste, containing 0.11% fluoride and GC Tooth Mousse, a professional remineralizing treatment paste (the active ingredients: casein phosphopeptide - amorphous calcium phosphate, fluoride). NaF solution (0.14% fluoride) was used as the positive control, while double distilled water (ddH2O) was used as the negative control. The remineralization of enamel discs was evaluated using Knoop hardness test, confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and polarized light microscopy (PLM), and the caries lesion depth was quantified using an image analyzer. The data were analyzed by ANOVA.


RESULTS
All test products showed a recovery of the Knoop Hardness Number (KHN) after remineralization cycling treatment. The recovery of enamel KHN for Colgate Sensitive Pro-Relief, GC Mousse, Crest toothpasteand NaF groups were 44.53 +/- 6.72%, 35.00 +/- 7.83%, 24.56 +/- 5.95% and 42.51 +/- 6.74% respectively, while the recovery of negative control group was 18.99 +/- 4.98%. PLM results indicated the lesion depth recovery of 49.63 +/- 8.06%, 35.08 +/- 2.19%, 22.60 +/- 7.30% and 53.20 +/- 1.48% respectively, which were also significantly greater than that of the negative group (20.51 +/- 4.80%). CLSM analysis showed a reduction of average area, and total and average dye fluorescence of the lesions after treatment. The Colgate Sensitive Pro-Relief group presented significantly greater remineralization than the other toothpaste groups, while the Crest toothpaste group showed the lowest remineralization ability.
Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, College of Stomatology, The Affiliated Hospital of Stomatology, Chongqing Medical University, ChongQing, China.
Yajing
Y
Huang
Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, College of Stomatology, The Affiliated Hospital of Stomatology, Chongqing Medical University, ChongQing, China.
Yanxia
Y
Duan
Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, College of Stomatology, The Affiliated Hospital of Stomatology, Chongqing Medical University, ChongQing, China.
Yingzi
Y
Qian
Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, College of Stomatology, The Affiliated Hospital of Stomatology, Chongqing Medical University, ChongQing, China.
Rui
R
Huang
Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, College of Stomatology, The Affiliated Hospital of Stomatology, Chongqing Medical University, ChongQing, China.
Zhengyan
Z
Yang
Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, College of Stomatology, The Affiliated Hospital of Stomatology, Chongqing Medical University, ChongQing, China.
Yueheng
Y
Li
Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, College of Stomatology, The Affiliated Hospital of Stomatology, Chongqing Medical University, ChongQing, China.
Zhi
Z
Zhou
D000818:Animals; D001120:Arginine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002119:Calcium Carbonate / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002327:Cariostatic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002364:Caseins / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002417:Cattle; D003743:Dental Enamel / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology; D003802:Dentifrices / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D005459:Fluorides / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006244:Hardness; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods; D008422:Materials Testing; D018613:Microscopy, Confocal; D008859:Microscopy, Polarization; D011897:Random Allocation; D012969:Sodium Fluoride / Q000627:therapeutic use; D017001:Tooth Demineralization / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology; D014089:Tooth Remineralization / Q000379:methods*; D014100:Toothpastes / Q000627:therapeutic use*
D002327:Cariostatic Agents; D002364:Caseins; D003802:Dentifrices; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D014100:Toothpastes; C447032:casein phosphopeptide-amorphous calcium phosphate nanocomplex; D012969:Sodium Fluoride; D001120:Arginine; D002119:Calcium Carbonate; D005459:Fluorides