Effect of diode lasers in treatment of dentinal hypersensitivity

Abstract

Background: Dentinal hypersensitivity (DH) is characterized by a nonspontaneous, an acute short- or long-lasting pain originating from exposure of the dentinal tubules or dentine to the thermal, chemical, mechanical, or osmotic stimuli, which cannot be attributed to any other dental pathology. There are a lot of treatments; one of these is lasers. Laser therapy was first introduced as a potential method for treating DH in the mid-1980s. Various types of laser used in treatment include low-power lasers He-Ne (632.5 nm), diode lasers (DLs) with various wavelengths 810, 940, and 980 nm, and medium-power lasers as Nd:YAG (1064 nm), CO2 (10600 nm), Er:YAG (2940 nm), and Er, Cr:YSGG (2780 nm). He-Ne (632.5 nm) and DLs have analgesic effect; they can have effect alone or with combination with desensitizing agents. Aim of Study: To appraise and assess the efficiency of different techniques using DLs 810 and 980 nm alone or in combination with different desensitizing agents in the management and treatment of DH. Materials and Methods: A total of 138 articles are included; then, according to exclusion criteria, 46 articles are included; after specific exclusion criteria and evaluation of the articles, they become 35 articles. Regarding exclusion criteria as some titles are not related to the title of literature and discuss other issues, from the 35 articles, there were five systematic review articles and 22 in vivo and 8 in vitro studies. Results: 980 nm and 810 DLs are effective in reduction or treatment of DH alone or in combination with desensitizing agents. DLs and in combination with desensitizing materials are very efficient and precise than treatment done by DLs alone; there is no effect on the pulp tissue as the temperature does not exceed the threshold temperature (5.5°C). Conclusion: 810 and 980 DLs are effective in the treatment and reduction of DH, DLs with different wavelengths alone or with desensitizing materials are efficient, and there is no effect on the pulp tissue as the temperature does not exceed the threshold temperature.