It has been known for many years that saliva plays a critical role in fighting tooth decay. More than 30 years of research from the laboratory of Dr. Israel Kleinberg, chairman of the Department of Oral Biology and Pathology at Stony Brook University, identified certain bacteria in biofilms that can generate alkali from nitrogenous substrates provided from saliva. The amino acid arginine was identified as the key substrate in saliva involved in base formation. The subsequent rise in pH also provides a favorable environment for calcium and phosphate to enhance the remineralization process.
A new, fluoride-free therapeutic has been developed that contains arginine, calcium, and the bicarbonate/carbonate anions. This complex has also been proven effective in sealing open dentinal tubules and has been incorporated into 2 products, ProClude Desensitizing Prophy Paste and DenClude Desensitizing Dental Cream. A 726-patient, 2-year clinical study was conducted to evaluate the effect of the arginine, calcium, and bicarbonate/carbonate toothpaste, DenClude, on caries development in 10- to 11-year-old Venezuelan schoolchildren. The control was a fluoride toothpaste at 1,100 ppm.
Caries development overall was significantly less in the subjects that used the test toothpaste than occurred in the fluoride toothpaste control. The mean DMFS score rose in the control group at 1 year and leveled off at 2 years. In the test group, the mean DMFS score decreased at 1 year before rising at 2 years. Overall, these results suggest inhibition of caries progression, possibly some caries reversal by the end of the first year with the test toothpaste, followed by a period of what appeared to be a slower increase in caries size between 1 and 2 years.
(Source: The Journal of Clinical Dentistry, Volume XVI, Number 3, 2005)
