A New Gel That Repairs Enamel

Tooth decay affects 2.5 billion people, with no natural way to rebuild lost enamel. Could a revolutionary repair gel be the cure?

An estimated 2.5 billion people live with untreated tooth decay in permanent teeth, and science has finally found a way to restore lost enamel using an innovative repair gel ()!

According to research conducted at Nottingham University, a gel that miraculously repairs enamel, like how enamel naturally heals, has been unearthed.

Can a New Gel Reverse Tooth Decay and Repair Enamel?

According to a study conducted by scientists from the University of Nottingham, a tooth enamel gel was formulated that has the tendency to heal eroded or damaged enamel, just as it would naturally grow during the earliest stage of human development.

This gel, when applied to the tooth enamel, forms a layer over the teeth and fills the holes and damages the tooth structure. In addition, it interacts with the calcium and phosphate ions in the saliva and promotes mineralization, creating a new enamel layer.

This can also be applied to the dentin, which can help form a new layer of enamel. Nevertheless, this paved the way for self-healing teeth().

Dr. Abshar Hasan, leading author of the study, said, “Dental enamel has a unique structure, which gives enamel its remarkable properties that protect our teeth throughout life against physical, chemical, and thermal insults. When our material is applied to demineralized or eroded enamel or exposed dentine, the material promotes the growth of crystals in an integrated and organized manner, recovering the architecture of our natural, healthy enamel.”

What Happens When Tooth Decay Occurs?

A tooth has three parts:

• Tooth enamel, the first layer
• Dentin, the second layer
• Pulp, the inner part where nerve innervation happens and that holds the life of a tooth.

However, when your food is stuck to your teeth for a long time, or when you don’t brush properly, germs start acting on your teeth. They damage the outer layer of the teeth, and like soldiers, they march and start going deep inside, worsening the tooth decay, resulting in pain.

What are the Available Treatments for Tooth Decay?

Tooth decay, if it’s not deep, is generally taken care of by scraping the decay out, drilling the tooth, and closing it up with a normal filling.

However, if the decay is deep and reaches the pulp, that’s when people experience pain. So, here a deep drilling is done, followed by a root canal procedure.

Enamel Regrowth Gel: Proven in the Lab, Still Out of Reach

For people who have damaged or eroded teeth, this new miraculous discovery will be a boon. However, this procedure was successful in a lab setting and is not yet available to the public.

Further research and regulatory approval will be needed for full-fledged use. This is definitely a groundbreaking innovation.

References:

1. Global oral health statistics – (https://www.dentalhealth.org/global-oral-health-statistics)
2. New gel restores dental enamel and could revolutionise tooth repair – (https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/news/new-gel-restores-dental-enamel-and-could-revolutionise-tooth-repair)

Source-Eurekalert