Clinical trial of an air-abrasion/chemomechanical operative procedure for the restorative treatment of dental patients.

The aim of this study was to investigate whether caries removal with air-abrasion/Carisolv gel is an acceptable and viable alternative in the treatment of dental patients. Twenty-two patients were treated with conventional methods (local anaesthetic injection/drill) followed by alternative treatment (air-abrasion and Carisolv gel) in a general practice setting, by the same operator. The participants' pre-operative anxiety levels were measured using the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale. Their postoperative levels of anxiety/dislike for aspects of both conventional and alternative treatments were assessed using a visual analogue scale. Levels of anxiety/dislike for both treatments were compared and statistically analysed. Results showed 100% of subjects were concerned about several aspects of conventional treatment including pain/discomfort on injection, taste of anaesthetic, length of time tissues remained numb, noise of the drill, its sensory vibrations and water coolant. However, 75% of the study population were happy with all aspects of the air-abrasion technique including dust, pain/discomfort and vibrations produced. Overall, the study population found Carisolv gel to be an acceptable alternative method of caries removal in terms of time taken, pain/discomfort and taste. There were statistically significant differences between patients' perceptions of various aspects of the two treatment methods. All participants found the alternative treatment to be pain-free, quicker and overall more acceptable compared with conventional treatment. The conclusion drawn from the study was that air-abrasion/Carisolv gel treatment was a well-accepted and viable alternative to conventional local anaesthetic injection and drill for dental patients.