Basic Study on Chenge of Temperature of a Tooth after CO₂ Laser Irradiation

Abstract

An extracted premolar with single root was irradiated CO₂ pulse laser on it's cusp. Then the change of the surface temperature of the cusp and root, and the change of the temperature of the pulp cavity and root canal of this tooth after irradiation of laser were measured and recorded by a medical thermometer and thermocouples.
For example, when a pulse laser of 10W in power and 1 second in pulse width irradiated on the cusp, temperature in the pulp cavity started elevating 2.5 seconds after irradiation to reach 6.7°C in peak 17.5 seconds after.
According to these results, it is considered that pulp will free from irreversible damage after irradiation of these quantity of laser energy.
But additional investigation is necessary to confirm the correlation pain and heat production in lasered tooth.