Impact of increased gas medium pressure on tooth microcirculation

Objective. To evaluate the effect of hyperbaric exposure on tooth microcirculation.

Subjects and methods. The investigation enrolled 14 divers who had undergone a dental examination, followed by a study of the microcirculation of intact and carious teeth, by using laser Doppler flowmetry during simulated (pressure chamber) diving at a depth of 30 m (0.4 MPa) and 70 m (0.8 MPa).

Results. In the 30- and 70-m diving groups, the baseline microcirculation of carious teeth were higher than that of intact teeth by 43.5 and 45.2%, respectively (p<0.05). After pressure chamber diving, there was an insignificant decrease in the microcirculation of intact teeth compared to the baseline values. The carious teeth exhibited a significant (p<0.05) reduction in the microcirculation parameters compared to the baseline values: when diving at a depth of 30 m by 0.7 perfusion units (by 21.2%) and at a depth of 70 m by 1.2 perfusion units (by 41.4%).

Conclusion. The results of the study have indicated that the higher gas medium pressure caused a decrease in the microcirculation of carious teeth. The magnitude of the change in microcirculation parameters depends on the depth of the dive. Further study of the microcirculation of the teeth will be able to create informative evaluation criteria to search for effective pharmacological agents for the prevention of barodontalgia in divers.