Thermal imaging of the pulp during residual adhesive removal

Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the temperature changes of the pulpal area during different adhesive clean-up procedures. Materials and methods A total of 80 freshly extracted adult maxillary premolar teeth were divided into four groups. Adhesive clean-up was performed with 6- and 12-fluted tungsten carbide burs (TCB) using low- and high-speed handpieces with air or water cooling after bracket debonding. The temperature changes and cool down times were evaluated with a thermal camera. Paired t test, analysis of variance (ANOVA), and Student–Newman–Keuls multiple comparison analysis were used for statistical analysis of the data. Results All experimental groups, except the water cooling group, showed a significant temperature rise ( p