Surface temperature and temperature gradients of human teeth in situ

Abstract

The surface temperature and temperature gradients of the six maxillary anterior teeth were measured for fourteen human subjects. The teeth were isolated with a rubber dam and a small thermocouple was used to measure temperature. The average surface temperature from all teeth tested was 30.6 °C. The temperatures of similar teeth from the various subjects were closely grouped, with a standard deviation of about 1 °C. Surface temperature decreased in an anterior direction. The palatal surface of each tooth was about 0.4 °C warmer than the labial surface. There was no significant difference between normal teeth and those with non-vital pulps. Temperature fluctuations were observed, and attributed to varying air convection currents. From the pattern of the surface measurements and the temperature gradients, it was concluded that passive conduction from the periodontal tissue is the major source of heat which determines surface temperature, and that tooth circulation and pulp metabolism are relatively unimportant as tooth heat sources.