Ultrathin veneer is a new therapeutic technology developed from minimally invasive theories. Ultrathin veneer alters the unwanted shape and color of a tooth through minimal or lack of preparation. The color of tooth after restoration is mixed with the natural color of tooth, the original color of veneer, and the color of bonding material because of ultrathin (approximately 0.2 mm) veneer. Thus, the color is affected by numerous variations. Full considerations are required for creating designs. The author summarizes clinical points and provides suggestions for ultrathin veneer in color.

The etiology of malocclusions basically involves both congenital and environmental factors. Malocclusion is the result of the abnormal development of the orofacial complex (including tooth, dental alveolar bone, upper and lower jaws). Early orthodontic interceptive treatments involve the elimination of all congenital and environmental factors that contribute to the malformation of the orofacial complex, as well as interrupt the deviated development of the orofacial complex and the occlusion. Early orthodontic interceptive treatments mainly aim to use children’s growth potential to correct abnormal developments of occlusions and orthodontically treat malocclusions more efficiently. The early orthodontic interceptive treatments include correcting the child’s bad oral habits, training the abnormal functioned para-oral muscles, maintaining the normal eruptions of succeeding permanent teeth, applying interceptive treatments to the mal-developed teeth, and employing functional orthopedic treatments for abnormal growths of the upper and lower jaws. In orthodontics, correcting mal-positioned teeth is called orthodontic treatment, while rectifying the abnormal relationships of the upper and lower jaws is called functional orthopedic treatment. However, no clear definition is available as regards to the early orthodontic interceptive treatment of malocclusions caused by the deviated development of the dental alveolar bone. This new theory of “early dental alveolar bone and dental arch remodeling technique” was proposed by Professor Li Xiaobing of the Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Faculty of Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics in West China Hospital of Stomatology through his clinical analyses and investigation of his early orthodontic interceptive treatments. He defined the early orthodontic corrections of abnormal growth of dental alveolar bone as “remodel”. The “early dental alveolar bone and dental arch remodeling theory and technique” is proved useful in malocclusion diagnosis and treatment planning during early orthodontic interceptive treatment with malformed dental arch. With the development of the theory and technique, the author intended to prevent and intercept the malocclusion development more effectively and efficiently. This review presents the development and clinical usages of the theory which to provide a new vision in the analysis of malocclusions on the basis of the developmental mechanism of the alveolar bone and dental arch. With clinical case illustration, the author demonstrateshis successful orthodontic clinical practices with this theory, which may contribute to the development of contemporary orthodontic theories and techniques.

Objective This study aimed to evaluate the potency of optical coherence tomography (OCT) to detect earlyocclusal caries compared with clinical visual examination. Methods Approximately 97 sites of occlusal fissures on 77 extractedaccessional human teeth were scored by three examiners using conventional visual examination and OCT. Results of histologicalexamination on these sites obtained by polarimicroscope served as a gold standard to analyze the sensitivity (SE), specificity(SP), positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV). Results of the area under receiver operatingcharacteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) by visual examination and OCT were also analyzed. The Spearman’s rank correlationcoefficient with histology and the inter-examiner reliability were compared. Results For sites of enamel demineralizationlimited to the outer 1/2 of the enamel layer, the detection rate of OCT (14/25) was obviously higher than that of the clinicaland visual examination (3/25). SE, SP, PPV and NPV of OCT during diagnosis of the early occlusal caries (0.83, 0.64, 0.87and 0.57) were higher than that of the visual examination (0.79, 0.60, 0.85 and 0.50). AUC (95%CI) of OCT and the visualexamination were 0.737 (0.569-0.822) and 0.696 (0.614-0.859), respectively. No statistically significant difference was observedbetween the results. Results of OCT correlated well with histology (r=0.559, P<0.05). The inter-examiner reliability of OCTwas medium. Conclusion OCT can accurately detect early occlusal lesions atraumatically with high sensitivity and effectiveness.OCT exhibits the potential of auxiliary clinical diagnosis enhancing detection rate and finally implementing early diagnosis and early intervention of early occlusal lesions inclinical practice.

Objective To evaluate the biomineralization of the tissue-engineering electrospun polycaprolactone (PCL) scaffold and its potential use for guided bone regeneration (GBR) membranes. Methods PCL ultrafinefiber scaffolds were fabricated by electrospinning and then immersed in supersaturated calcification solution (SCS) for biomineralization investigation. The electrospun PCL scaffolds and the calcium phosphate coating were identified by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Water-contact angles were also measured to evaluate the hydrophilicity of the modified surface. The biocompatibility of the composite was investigated by culturing osteoblasts on the scaffolds. Cell behavior was observed by SEM. Results The electrospun PCL scaffold was composed of ultrafine fibers and well-interconnected pores. The deposits on the fibers grew in number and size as the biomineralization time increased. Then, the covering of the whole PCL film was identified as dicalcium phosphate dehydrate and apatite. Good cell attachment and proliferation behavior were observed on the membranes. Conclusion The quick apatite formation on the surface of the PCL electrospun scaffold indicated that SCS biomineralization may be an effective approach for obtaining PCL/calcium phosphate composites. The cellular biocompatibility of the composite scaffold was preliminarily confirmed by the in vitro culture of osteoblasts on the scaffold. As such, the composite scaffold is a promising biomimetic extracellular matrix biomaterial for bone tissue engineering and GBR membranes.

Objective This study aims to compare the marginal accuracy of single crowns fabricated using self-curing resin, Luxatemp, and computer aided design/computer aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) methods in clinical application. Methods A total of 30 working dies, which were obtained from 30 clinical teeth prepared with full crown as standard, were created and made into 30 self-curing resin, Luxatemp, and CAD/CAM single crowns. The restorations were seated on the working dies, and stereomicroscope was used to observe and measure the thickness of reference points. One-way analysis of variance, which was performed using SPSS 19.0 software package, compared the marginal gap widths of self-curing resin, Luxatemp, and CAD/CAM provisional crowns. Results The mean marginal gap widths of the fabricated self-curing resin, Luxatemp, and CAD/CAM were (179.06±33.24), (88.83±9.56), and (43.61±7.27) μm, respectively. A significant difference was observed among the three provisional crowns (P<0.05). Conclusion The marginal gap width of CAD/CAM provisional crown was lower than that of the self-curing resin and Luxatemp. Thus, the CAD/CAM provisional crown offers a better remediation effect in clinical application.