Barry J. Litwin, D.D.S., F.A.G.D.

Ozone—Lightening Fast Caries Treatment

Dentistry treatments are being developed at lightning speed. One of the treatments you will be hearing more and more about is ozone therapy.

Ozone is a gas that is produced naturally. If you are outside after a lightning storm, you will notice an "odd" smell. That smell is ozone.

This therapy isn't truly new. It has been used since 1870 in Europe. In America, its use began in 1885, but not in dentistry, where it is starting to catch wind in its sails.

As a disinfectant, ozone is excellent. It disinfects better and faster than chlorine (bleach) and produces no side effects.

Ozone is routinely used in operating rooms to kill bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites, to treat diseases and to help wounds heal faster.

The basis of ozone treatment is that ozone and bacteria have opposite electrical charges. Opposite charges attract each other, so bacteria attract ozone molecules like a magnet. The ozone breaks a bacterium's cell wall, causing it to die.

Ozone therapy can be used to sterilize root canals after the infected pulp has been removed and to heal soft tissue lesions easier and faster. When used to disinfect root canals, the gas easily travels through the canals, finds all the hidden canals and sterilizes them.

Ozone therapy is non-invasive (no drilling!) and pain-free, which makes it a good option to treat childhood caries. Repairing a cavity is less invasive because we don't have to remove as much tooth structure. Ozone sterilizes the bottom of the cavity, and that means we don't have to use as much filling material.

Keep your eye on the horizon for this new treatment.