Plasma can replace dentist's drill, reveals study

The German research team, led by Dr Stefan Rupf, established that plasma, a form of ionized gas, could do the job of cleaning cavities more quickly and efficiently, even where the bacteria were set in resistant ‘biofilms’ on the dentine, the core of the tooth under the enamel.

Tests conducted on dentine samples
The researchers performed tests on dentine models from extracted human molars. For the test, they purposely infected the samples with numerous bacteria and used cold plasma-beams to destroy the germs.

The team found that plasma beams actually eradicated 99.99 percent of the tooth-decaying germs.

“The low temperature means they can kill the microbes while preserving the tooth. The dental pulp at the centre of the tooth, underneath the dentin, is linked to the blood supply and nerves and heat damage to it must be avoided at all costs,” said Rupf.

He further said that, “Drilling is a very uncomfortable and sometimes painful experience. Cold plasma, in contrast, is a completely contact-free method that is highly effective.”

Use of plasma in medication
“Plasma medicine had the potential to pick out tiny targets, perhaps even single cells,” said Professor Bill Graham, physicist from Queen's University Belfast, Ireland.

He also added that, “Plasma scalpels were already being used in sports medicine to treat collagen problems, and there was great interest in the technology for use in burns patients.”

Plasma is the fourth and most common of all matters found in the universe and is found in natural forms, from the contents of the sun and its lightning.

Plasma is heavily relied upon in the field of modern technology, like in incandescent lightning and produce of semiconductors.

Though plasmas can be synthetically created by using an electrical field or laser, while adding energy to gas, they can be extremely hot.

On the contrary, technology has given rise to the possibility of creating cooler plasmas.

“Obviously, as with any new treatment, we need to check that it can be used safely, but there is no evidence at the moment that there are any problems,” concluded Graham.

The details of the study appear in Journal of Medical Microbiology.