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What Is Tooth Enamel? - Pronamel® ToothpasteTooth enamel -
Injury, teeth grinding, and cavities can all…. When people have "soft" teeth, it may be because they don't have enough enamel or have weakened enamel.
This can cause pain and other dental issues…. While some foods and beverages promote healthy teeth and gums, others may lead to decay, erosion, and the development of oral disease.
Tooth decay is a common concern in children. The use of fluoride, dental sealants, and regular dental cleanings can help treat and prevent tooth decay. With treatment, dry socket symptoms usually resolve within 7 days.
Everything you need to know about Byte aligners and how to get your own. Dry socket after a tooth extraction is preventable but can lead to severe pain and discomfort. Home remedies such as honey, black tea, and warm salt….
A Quiz for Teens Are You a Workaholic? How Well Do You Sleep? Health Conditions Discover Plan Connect. Tooth Enamel Erosion: What You Should Know. Medically reviewed by Christine Frank, DDS — By Neel Duggal — Updated on May 24, Symptoms Causes Can it grow back?
Treatment and prevention The enamel on your teeth is very tough, but it can erode over time for many different reasons. Enamel erosion symptoms. Causes of enamel erosion. Can tooth enamel grow back? Treating and preventing enamel erosion.
How we reviewed this article: Sources. Healthline has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations.
We avoid using tertiary references. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy. May 24, Written By Neel Duggal.
Jan 24, Medically Reviewed By Christine Frank, DDS. Share this article. Read this next. Medically reviewed by Christine Frank, DDS. What Causes Transparent Teeth? What Is Dental Resorption?
When acids are present and the critical pH is reached, the hydroxyapatite crystallites of enamel demineralize, allowing for greater bacterial invasion deeper into the tooth.
The most important bacterium involved with tooth decay is Streptococcus mutans , but the number and type of bacteria varies with the progress of tooth destruction. Furthermore, tooth morphology dictates that the most common site for the initiation of dental caries is in the deep grooves, pits, and fissures of enamel.
When demineralization of enamel occurs, a dentist can use a sharp instrument, such as a dental explorer , and "feel a stick" at the location of the decay. As enamel continues to become less mineralized and is unable to prevent the encroachment of bacteria, the underlying dentin becomes affected as well.
When dentin, which normally supports enamel, is destroyed by a physiologic condition or by decay, enamel is unable to compensate for its brittleness and breaks away from the tooth easily.
The extent to which tooth decay is likely, known as cariogenicity , depends on factors such as how long the sugar remains in the mouth. Contrary to common belief, it is not the amount of sugar ingested but the frequency of sugar ingestion that is the most important factor in the causation of tooth decay.
Eating a greater quantity of sugar in one sitting does not increase the time of demineralization. Similarly, eating a lesser quantity of sugar in one sitting does not decrease the time of demineralization.
Thus, eating a great quantity of sugar at one time in the day is less detrimental than is a very small quantity ingested in many intervals throughout the day.
For example, in terms of oral health, it is better to eat a single dessert at dinner time than to snack on a bag of candy throughout the day. In addition to bacterial invasion, enamel is also susceptible to other destructive forces.
Bruxism , also known as clenching of or grinding on teeth, destroys enamel very quickly. The wear rate of enamel, called attrition , is 8 micrometers a year from normal factors. Furthermore, normal tooth contact is compensated physiologically by the periodontal ligaments and the arrangement of dental occlusion.
The truly destructive forces are the parafunctional movements , as found in bruxism, which can cause irreversible damage to the enamel. Other nonbacterial processes of enamel destruction include abrasion involving foreign elements, such as toothbrushes , erosion involving chemical processes, such as dissolving by soft drinks [27] or lemon and other juices , and possibly abfraction involving compressive and tensile forces.
Though enamel is described as tough, it has a similar brittleness to glass , making it, unlike other natural crack-resistant laminate structures such as shell and nacre , vulnerable to fracture.
In spite of this it can withstand bite forces as high as 1, N many times a day during chewing. Gastroesophageal reflux disease can also lead to enamel loss, as acid refluxes up the esophagus and into the mouth, occurring most during overnight sleep.
Because enamel is vulnerable to demineralization, prevention of tooth decay is the best way to maintain the health of teeth. Most countries have wide use of toothbrushes , which can reduce the number of dental biofilm and food particles on enamel.
In isolated societies that do not have access to toothbrushes, it is common for those people to use other objects, such as sticks, to clean their teeth. In between two adjacent teeth, floss is used to wipe the enamel surfaces free of plaque and food particles to discourage bacterial growth.
Although neither floss nor toothbrushes can penetrate the deep grooves and pits of enamel, good general oral-health habits can usually prevent enough bacterial growth to keep tooth decay from starting. Structural integrity of the enamel is genetic, and so is its predisposition to demineralization or attack from bacteria.
Fluoride catalyzes the diffusion of calcium and phosphate into the tooth surface, which in turn remineralizes the crystalline structures in a dental cavity. The remineralized tooth surfaces contain fluoridated hydroxyapatite and fluorapatite , which resist acid attack much better than the original tooth did.
Fluoride ions, as an antimicrobial, may activate bacterial genes associated with fluoride riboswitches. Most dental professionals and organizations agree that the inclusion of fluoride in public water has been one of the most effective methods of decreasing the prevalence of tooth decay.
The recommended dosage of fluoride in drinking water does not depend on air temperature. Some groups have spoken out against fluoridated drinking water , for reasons such as the neurotoxicity of fluoride or the damage fluoride can do as fluorosis.
Fluorosis is a condition resulting from the overexposure to fluoride, especially between the ages of 6 months and 5 years, and appears as mottled enamel. Where fluoride is found naturally in high concentrations, filters are often used to decrease the amount of fluoride in water.
For this reason, codes have been developed by dental professionals to limit the amount of fluoride a person should take. Furthermore, whereas topical fluoride, found in toothpaste and mouthwashes , does not cause fluorosis, its effects are now considered more important than those of systemic fluoride, such as when drinking fluorinated water.
Lately, dental professionals are looking for other ways to present fluoride such as in varnish or other mineralizing products such as Amorphous calcium phosphate to the community in the form of topical procedures, either done by professionals or self-administered.
Mineralization of the incipient lesion instead of restoration later is a prime goal of most dental professionals. Most dental restorations involve the removal of enamel. Frequently, the purpose of removal is to gain access to the underlying decay in the dentin or inflammation in the pulp.
This is typically the case in amalgam restorations and endodontic treatment. Nonetheless, enamel can sometimes be removed before there is any decay present.
The most popular example is the dental sealant. In the past, the process of placing dental sealants involved removing enamel in the deep fissures and grooves of a tooth, followed by replacing it with a restorative material. In spite of this, there are still cases where deep fissures and grooves in enamel are removed in order to prevent decay, and a sealant may or may not be placed depending on the situation.
Aesthetics is another reason for the removal of enamel. Removing enamel is necessary when placing crowns and veneers to enhance the appearance of teeth. In both of these instances, when unsupported by underlying dentin, that portion of the enamel is more vulnerable to fracture. Invented in , acid-etching employs dental etchants and is used frequently when bonding dental restoration to teeth.
The effects of acid-etching on enamel can vary. Important variables are the amount of time the etchant is applied, the type of etchant used, and the current condition of the enamel.
There are three types of patterns formed by acid-etching. Besides concluding that type 1 is the most favorable pattern and type 3 the least, the explanation for these different patterns is not known for certain but is most commonly attributed to different crystallite orientation in the enamel.
The discoloration of teeth over time can result from exposure to substances such as tobacco , coffee , and tea. In a perfect state, enamel is colorless, but it does reflect underlying tooth structure with its stains since light reflection properties of the tooth are low. Tooth whitening or tooth bleaching procedures attempt to lighten a tooth's color in either of two ways: by chemical or mechanical action.
Working chemically, a bleaching agent is used to carry out an oxidation reaction in the enamel and dentin. Oxygen radicals from the peroxide in the whitening agents contact the stains in the interprismatic spaces within the enamel layer.
When this occurs, stains will be bleached and the teeth now appear lighter in color. Teeth not only appear whiter but also reflect light in increased amounts, which makes the teeth appear brighter as well. Studies show that whitening does not produce any ultrastructural or microhardness changes in the dental tissues.
Studies show that patients who have whitened their teeth take better care of them. Consequently, care should be taken and risk evaluated when choosing a product which is very acidic.
They have mild abrasives which aid in the removal of stains on enamel. Although this can be an effective method, it does not alter the intrinsic color of teeth. Microabrasion techniques employ both methods. An acid is used first to weaken the outer 22—27 micrometers of enamel in order to weaken it enough for the subsequent abrasive force.
If the discoloration is deeper or in the dentin, this method of tooth whitening will not be successful. There are 14 different types of amelogenesis imperfecta. The hypoplastic type is X-linked and results in normal enamel that appears in too little quantity, having the same effect as the most common type.
Chronic bilirubin encephalopathy , which can result from erythroblastosis fetalis , is a disease which has numerous effects on an infant , but it can also cause enamel hypoplasia and green staining of enamel.
Enamel hypoplasia is broadly defined to encompass all deviations from normal enamel in its various degrees of absence. Erythropoietic porphyria is a genetic disease resulting in the deposition of porphyrins throughout the body.
These deposits also occur in enamel and leave an appearance described as red in color and fluorescent. Fluorosis leads to mottled enamel and occurs from overexposure to fluoride. Tetracycline staining leads to brown bands on the areas of developing enamel. Children up to age 8 can develop mottled enamel from taking tetracycline.
As a result, tetracycline is contraindicated in pregnant women. Celiac disease , a disorder characterized by an auto-immune response to gluten , also commonly results in demineralization of the enamel. For the most part, research has shown that the formation of tooth enamel in animals is almost identical to formation in humans.
The enamel organ, including the dental papilla, and ameloblasts function similarly. Differences exist, certainly, in the morphology, number, and types of teeth among animals.
Dogs are less likely than humans to have tooth decay due to the high pH of dog saliva, which prevents an acidic environment from forming and the subsequent demineralization of enamel which would occur.
Similar to human teeth, the enamel of dogs is vulnerable to tetracycline staining. Consequently, this risk must be accounted for when tetracycline antibiotic therapy is administered to young dogs.
The mineral distribution in rodent enamel is different from that of monkeys, dogs, pigs, and humans. Enamel or enameloid is found in the dermal denticles of sharks and many early vertebrates, [60] and it appeared there before gnathostome teeth evolved. Due to the unique structure of enamel, the mechanical properties are very interesting.
Enamel is the hardest material in the body and is one of the most durable load-bearing biological materials.
It has been shown to have a fracture toughness three times greater than that of geological hydroxyapatite , the main mineral in enamel. Consisting of rod and interrod regions within the microstructure of enamel, the mechanical properties of enamel vary depending on the location within the microstructure.
This leads to a composite like hierarchical structure of enamel. Single crystallite hydroxyapatite, the mineral enamel is based on, is also anisotropic. Single crystallite hydroxyapatite has a higher hardness and young's modulus, which may be due to the defects present in enamel, such as substitutional ions as well as the presence of organic materials.
The mechanical properties of enamel not only are anisotropic due to the structure of the rods and interrods. They are also varying across the length of enamel from the enamel at the surface of the tooth, the outer enamel, to the junction between the dentin and enamel, DEJ.
The elastic modulus increases as the distance between the dentin-enamel junction DEJ increases within enamel. The fracture toughness can vary by up to a factor of three due to the orientation of the rods. Also in enamel, Cracks do not easily penetrate the dentin, which may lead to the higher fracture toughness.
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Download as PDF Printable version. Major tissue that makes up part of the tooth in humans and many animals. Main article: Oral hygiene. Retrieved 9 January Staines, W. Robinson and J. Hood
Throughout our lives, our teeth are constantly appetite control bedtime attack. Harmful bacteria feed on food Nurturing a supportive network in the mouth, particularly sugar. This leads to enwmel Tooth enamel Tooth by-products emamel wear away at the surface of teeth and ultimately cause tooth decay. When we eat acidic foods of any kind, tooth enamel temporarily softens and loses some of its important minerals. Within a few hours, saliva naturally restores the pH balance of the mouth. However, during this time, the enamel is at particular risk of permanent damage. The enamel on your teeth is enamell tough, Nurturing a supportive network it can Tootb over time for many different reasons. The enamep layer of your teeth consists of enamel, a substance that protects against physical and chemical damage. Tooth enamel is very tough. As a result, it can be prone to wear and tear. This is called enamel erosion.
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