Prolonged Treatment Of White Spot Lesions With Icon Resin Infiltration

Everyone wants clean, white and shiny teeth they can show off. But white spots on these teeth can hamper their beautiful smile. This is why, taking precautions from early age is vital One of the common problems overlooked is the occurrence of white enamel-like scratches, appearing all over the teeth. This is known as White Spot Lesions.

What is WSL?

White spot lesions are enamel-like carious lesions attributed to mineral loss in the body. It leads to an alteration of the refractive index of the affected area, causing increased visual enamel opacity These lesions do not form cavities and can be reversed with the help of icon resin infiltration. The common ways of spotting WSLs is the appearance of

• white patches
• white line/stripes
• faint white lines
• white speckled lesions

What Are The Risk Factors Associated With WSL?

The formation of white spot lesions around orthodontic attachments is common following its treatment. The common risk factors associated with orthodontic scars are:

1. Demineralization: This side-effect is connected with fixed orthodontic treatment, mostly connected to poor oral hygiene.
2. The subsequent enamel demineralization and white spot lesions caused due to acidic byproducts of the bacteria.
3. It can lead to poor aesthetics, legal complications, and, most importantly, patient dissatisfaction.
4. WSLs develop around brackets, arch wires, bands, ligatures, and other orthodontic devices. This can complicate oral hygiene and result in prolonged plaque accumulation.

Clinically proven, these white spots around orthodontic attachments can appear just four weeks into treatment. Their prevalence in orthodontic patients can vary from 2% to 96%.

What Is A Long-lasting Solution To WSL?

Dentists prescribe icon resin infiltration as the common solution to WSL. This minimal yet intrusive restorative treatment is recommended for WSLs and lesions existing congenitally.

This infiltration is a micro-invasive technique that creates a superficial layer of less than 30μm of demineralized and removed sound enamel. It helps reduce multiple restorations in that particular area. This procedure can be concluded on radiographically confirmed lesions affecting the third dentin and half of the enamel. The icon treatment does its part of ceiling micro permeability, preventing bacteria from making their space in the enamel.

The novel technique of icon resin infiltration helps fill the gap between the prevention and restoration of lesions up to the first third dentin (D-1). It can camouflage the appearing white lesions. The technology helps reinforce, fulfil, and stabilize enamel without hampering the tooth structure. With this, fluoride and casein phosphopeptide-amorphous calcium phosphate remineralise white spot lesions.

How Is Icon Resin Infiltration Applied?

The motive of infiltration is to inject porous enamel with resin through capillary action. This extracts and prevents lesion progression by occluding microporosities. This provides a redirected pathway for dissolved materials and acids. That makes a way inside the lesion and not on the lesion surface. Its pain-free application demands expertise in performing the following steps.

• Icon resin infiltration is a fusion of tetraethylene glycol dimethacrylate that is applied on the lesion surface with a micro brush. This micro-brush is applied on the lesion surface for three minutes.
• Excessively applied resin is cleaned using a cotton roll and settled with a light cure.
• The procedure is repeated again, followed by a light cure.
• The resin layer is applied multiple times as the former shrinks after application and may result in space evolution. This space is filled after the second application.

This infiltration leads to positive side effects along with offering numerous advantages.

Advantages Of Icon Resin Infiltration

Infiltration technique has initiated innovative ways to treat initial carious lesions as part of minimum intervention dentistry. This process represents a different approach of treating non-cavitated lesions of smooth and proximal surfaces for deciduous and permanent up-teeth until the first third of dentin (D-1 level). This procedure has several key benefits.

• Preserving tooth structure through a non-invasive treatment.
• Can be done in one visit.
• Mechanically stabilizes demineralized enamel.
• More penetration in porous areas.
• Easy extraction of lesions that progress.
• Lesser risks of secondary caries.
• Freedom from postoperative sensitivity or pulpal inflammation.
• Less risk of gingivitis and periodontitis.
• Enhances the aesthetic outcome when applied as a masking resin over demineralized labial surfaces, namely WSLs, on orthodontic patients.
• Acceptance for most of the conditions of the patients.

While the therapy is minimal intervention, it demands experts and the use of professional kits like those on Dental Avenue for optimum outcomes. Here are some of the outcomes that patients experience.

Aesthetic Results With Icon Resin Infiltration

More and more people are demanding a clean mouth with white teeth and more oral hygiene. Without anesthesia and any drilling, icon resin infiltration is ideal for cosmetic enhancement. This technique leads to micro-invasive enhancement and appearance of the natural teeth, again.

• The porosity caused by initial demineralization of caries fluctuate the enamel’s refractive index, leading to a white colour of incipient lesion.
• The lesions can again have an attractive white appearance due to the penetration and polymerization of low viscous resin within the lesion body. This leads to a change in the appearance.
• Knosel et al. conducted a clinical trial with patients with white spot lesions and braces. Further reports stated that there was no significant difference in the resin’s colour even after a period of 6 months.
• Analysis by Kim S et al. stated that the effectiveness of infiltration among 20 teeth included 5 teeth, or 25%, being completely masked, 7 teeth, or 35%, and 8 teeth, or 40%, being partially masked.
• Another study was conducted among 18 teeth with decalcification of 11 teeth. Nearly 61%, was fully masked, 33%, i.e. 6 teeth being partially masked, and just one tooth 6%, being changed.

Such studies have demonstrated long-term aesthetic results of non-WSL teeth, leading to healthier teeth.

Conclusion

Icon resin infiltration has successfully provided naturally white enamel like teeth without any white spot lesions. To apply this, many dentists are bringing the solutions from Dental Avenue as it is providing quality-driven material like Burs, Gutta Percha Points, Dental Dam as required by dental experts. This has lead to a white bright smile for a longer period of time.