The overall objective of this proposed research is to advance the ability of near-IR (NIR) imaging to assess the depth and severity of carious lesions (dental decay). If diagnosed during early stages in the disease process, caries progression can be arrested/remineralized by non-surgical means through fluoride therapy, anti-bacterial therapy, or by low intensity laser irradiation. Clinicians need new imaging technologies that function using non- ionizing light and that aid in caries diagnosis and management/intervention by reliably tracking the pathology of carious lesions, from their initial stages until cavitation, n order to determine if the lesion is actively expanding or has been arrested. Light scattering in sound enamel and dentin is the principal factor limiting optical transmission through the tooth in the visible range from 400-700-nm. Light scattering in enamel decreases as the wavelength increases (1/?3), where ? represents the wavelength, due to the size of the principal light scatters1,3. The central hypothesis motivating this application is that the near-infrared region from 1300- 1700-nm holds the greatest potential for new optical imaging technologies due to markedly increased optical transmission and multispectral differences in water absorption. Previous in vitro and in vivo studies have demonstrated that NIR reflectance and transillumination images work best using different optimal wavelengths within the NIR spectral region, due to varying attenuation from water absorption and endogenous differences in water content among dental hard tissues4-6. The overall objectives of this application will be achieved through the following specific aims. (1) To test the hypothesis that multispectral NIR reflectance and transillumination measurements of occlusal carious lesions can be combined for improved assessment of lesion depth and severity. (2) To test the hypothesis that multispectral NIR reflectance measurements can be used to detect interproximal carious lesions viewed from the occlusal surface. The successful completion of this project is likely to substantially advance clinical dentistry by providing the necessary technology to detect early stages of caries and quantitatively monitor their progression. Furthermore, because there are no health risks from imaging with NIR light, and this technology can be miniaturized into NIR imaging probes at low cost, NIR imaging has the potential to be a universal caries screening method used globally and routinely to detect dental decay.

Public Health Relevance

Dental caries is one of the most prevalent chronic diseases affecting people worldwide. Using non-ionizing optical imaging technologies for accurate diagnosis of lesion depth and severity, we can avoid unnecessary surgical intervention and allow safe routine monitoring of dental caries without radiation exposure. Additionally, these technologies are ideal for the production of portable hand-held instruments that can be used to detect decay without x-rays and can increase dental outreach globally.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Dental & Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)
Type
Individual Predoctoral NRSA for M.D./Ph.D. Fellowships (ADAMHA) (F30)
Project #
5F30DE026052-02
Application #
9293123
Study Section
NIDR Special Grants Review Committee (DSR)
Program Officer
Frieden, Leslie A
Project Start
2016-07-01
Project End
2021-06-30
Budget Start
2017-07-01
Budget End
2018-06-30
Support Year
2
Fiscal Year
2017
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
University of California San Francisco
Department
Dentistry
Type
Schools of Dentistry/Oral Hygn
DUNS #
094878337
City
San Francisco
State
CA
Country
United States
Zip Code
94118
Ngo, Albert; Chan, Kenneth H; Le, Oanh et al. (2018) Image-guided Removal of Interproximal Lesions with a CO2 Laser. Proc SPIE Int Soc Opt Eng 10473:
Simon, Jacob C; Curtis, Donald A; Darling, Cynthia L et al. (2018) Multispectral near-infrared reflectance and transillumination imaging of occlusal carious lesions: Variation in lesion contrast with lesion depth. Proc SPIE Int Soc Opt Eng 10473:
Simon, Jacob C; Kang, Hobin; Staninec, Michal et al. (2017) Near-IR and CP-OCT imaging of suspected occlusal caries lesions. Lasers Surg Med 49:215-224
Simon, Jacob C; Darling, Cynthia L; Fried, Daniel (2017) Assessment of cavitation in artificial approximal dental lesions with near-IR imaging. Proc SPIE Int Soc Opt Eng 10044:
Simon, Jacob C; Lucas, Seth A; Staninec, Michal et al. (2016) Near-IR transillumination and reflectance imaging at 1,300?nm and 1,500-1,700?nm for in vivo caries detection. Lasers Surg Med 48:828-836
Chan, Kenneth H; Tom, Henry; Lee, Robert C et al. (2016) Clinical monitoring of smooth surface enamel lesions using CP-OCT during nonsurgical intervention. Lasers Surg Med 48:915-923