Is pit and fissure sealing good?

I believe that everyone is still relatively unfamiliar with pit and fissure sealing. In fact, pit and fissure sealing is a new technology. The emergence of pit and fissure sealing has brought good news to children, because the effect of pit and fissure sealing is very obvious. Many parents have always had a question, whether they should let their children do pit and fissure sealing. In fact, as long as you understand the benefits of pit and fissure sealing, then parents don’t have to worry about whether pit and fissure sealing is good or not.

The pit and fissure sealing technology is only suitable for children, because this technology is only useful when the child's teeth are developing. The purpose of pit and fissure sealing is to enhance the child's teeth's ability to resist caries.

(1) Clean the tooth surface: Install a rubber cup or a small brush on a low-speed handpiece and dip it in an appropriate amount of abrasive to clean the tooth surface. Be careful not to use cleaning agents containing oil. After cleaning, rinse the tooth surface with a water gun and drain saliva.

(2) Etching tooth surface: After cleaning, use a cotton roll to isolate the tooth surface from moisture. After blowing the tooth surface dry, use a fine-bristled brush, a small cotton ball or a small sponge to dip the etchant and apply it to the tooth surface to be sealed. The etchant is a gel or liquid containing phosphoric acid. The etched area should be the range that accepts sealing, generally 2/3 of the cusp bevel. The etching time is 30 to 60 seconds. Be careful not to wipe the tooth surface during the etching process. The amount of etchant should be appropriate and should not overflow into the oral soft tissue.

(3) Rinse and dry: After acid etching, rinse the tooth surface thoroughly. This is one of the keys to successful sealing. Usually, rinse under pressure for 10 to 15 seconds to remove the etchant and reaction products on the enamel surface. After rinsing, immediately replace the dry cotton roll to isolate it from moisture, and then blow dry the tooth surface with compressed air for about 15 seconds. You can also use highly volatile solvents such as anhydrous ethanol or ether to assist in drying. Note that the compressed air used must not contain oil or water.

The acid-etched tooth surface will appear white and foggy after drying. If the enamel after acid etching does not have this phenomenon, the acid etching should be repeated. During the operation, ensure that the etched tooth surface is not contaminated by saliva. If saliva contamination occurs, the tooth surface should be rinsed again and etched again. During the operation, care should also be taken not to allow the person being sealed to spit out the cotton roll used to isolate the moisture or rinse his mouth.

(4) Applying sealant: When using a self-curing sealant, take equal amounts of components A and B (containing initiator and accelerator respectively) and mix them evenly before each sealing. Pay attention to the mixing speed to avoid generating bubbles that affect the curing quality. The curing time of self-curing sealant is generally 1 minute to 2 minutes. It is usually stirred for 10 seconds to 15 seconds. It should be applied within 45 seconds after being completely mixed. Because the self-curing sealant enters the initial setting stage, the viscosity increases and the fluidity decreases. Therefore, the timing of mixing and applying must be good and completed before the initial setting stage.

Light-curing sealants do not need to be stirred. Just take them out and apply them directly on the tooth surface. If you are sealing multiple teeth continuously, be careful not to take too much. Light-curing sealants will gradually solidify under natural light.

Application method: Use a fine brush, a small sponge or the manufacturer's special supply device to apply the sealing material on the acid-etched tooth surface. Pay attention to allowing the sealant to penetrate into the pits and fissures, expel the air in the pits and fissures, and place an appropriate amount of sealing material to cover the entire acid-etched tooth surface. Try to make it as thick as possible without affecting the occlusion. Sometimes there may be high points, but they can be naturally worn off in 2 to 3 days. If the coating is too thin, it will lack sufficient compressive strength and can be easily bitten to pieces.

(5) Curing: The self-curing sealant will cure on its own within 1 to 2 minutes after application. After the light-curing sealant is applied, it is immediately irradiated with a visible light source at a distance of about 1 cm from the tooth tip. The irradiation time is determined by the type of product used and the performance of the visible light source, and is generally 20 to 40 seconds.

(6) Inspection: After the sealant has cured, use a probe to conduct a comprehensive inspection to understand the degree of curing and adhesion, find missed or unsealed pits and fissures and re-seal them, observe whether there is excessive sealing material and whether it needs to be removed, and take appropriate measures in a timely manner if any problems are found.

Teeth that have been sealed should be reviewed regularly (3 months, 6 months or 1 year) to observe the retention of the sealant. If the sealant falls off, the sealant should be redone. This will improve the sealant retention rate and the caries reduction rate.

In the above article, we introduced what pit and fissure sealants are. We know that the emergence of pit and fissure sealants brings benefits to children. This technology is only suitable for children because children’s teeth are in the development stage. Therefore, the use of pit and fissure sealants can enhance the teeth’s ability to resist caries.