After a seven year study, researchers in Australia have found that in many cases, decay can be treated, stopped and reversed.
Caries Management System, or CMS using Flouride, improving brushing and changing diet can stop and reverse decay before it causes cavities in teeth.
Once a cavity is visible, the tooth may be drilled and filled, they said. Dr. Wendell Evans, an associate professor at the University of Sydney says “For a long time it was believed that tooth decay was a rapidly progressive phenomenon and the best way to manage it was to identify early decay and remove it immediately in order to prevent a tooth surface from breaking up into cavities.
“It takes an average of four to eight years for decay to progress from the tooth’s outer layer [enamel] to the inner layer [dentine]. That is plenty of time for the decay to be detected and treated before it becomes a cavity and requires a filling.”
Evans added that “It showed that early decay could be stopped and reversed and that the need for drilling and filling was reduced dramatically. A tooth should be only be drilled and filled where an actual hole-in-the-tooth [cavity] is already evident.”
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