Intra- and inter-brand accuracy of four dental radiometers

Abstract

This study measured the accuracy and precision of four commercial dental radiometers. The intra-brand accuracy was also determined. The light outputs from 14 different curing lights were measured three times using four brands of dental radiometers and the results were compared to two laboratory-grade power meters that were used as the "gold standard". To ensure proper representation, three examples of each brand of dental radiometer were used. Data collected was analyzed using ANOVA, with 95% confidence intervals, comparing the laboratory-grade meters to the dental radiometers. Bioequivalence was established where the confidence interval for the irradiance values was within ±20% of the "gold standard" reading. Forest plots were used to highlight bioequivalence values. The two laboratory-grade meters differed by less than 0.6%. Overall, all three examples of the Bluephase and SDI radiometers as well as two examples of the LEDRadiometer and one CureRite meter were bioequivalent to the gold standard. However, the type of curing light measured had a significant effect on the accuracy of the radiometer. There was significant variability of the irradiance readings between radiometer brands, and between irradiance values recorded by the three samples of each brand studied. This made it impossible to definitively rank the radiometer brands for accuracy. Within the ±20% bioequivalence limits of this study, there was a clinically significant difference in the irradiance readings between radiometer brands and the choice of curing light affected the results. There was also significant variation in irradiance readings reported by different examples of the same brand of radiometer. Whether in clinical practice or in research, dental radiometers should not be used when either the irradiance or energy delivered needs to be accurately known.

Effect of temperature on post-cure polymerization of bulk-fill composites

“…644726). Taking into account the variability of the irradiance measurements obtained by some hand-held radiometers (14,15), in the present study the radiometer was used for monitoring the constancy of the curing unit irradiance before the polymerization of each composite material. The variations were under 10%, and value of 1090 mW/cm 2 represents the arithmetic mean of ten measurements.…”

Initial fracture resistance and curing temperature rise of ten contemporary resin-based composites with increasing radiant exposure

“…Whilst the dental radiometers used in all but 2 of these surveys are inaccurate in absolute irradiance terms they give us an overall picture of clinical practice. 12,13 A South African survey reported a 100% satisfaction level by dentists with the performance of their light curing units even though nearly half of the units had inadequate output. 14 Prolonged irradiation time may compensate for low irradiance.…”

Atenuação da intensidade de luz e profundidade de polimerização de resinas compostas

“…Na presente pesquisa, a luz transmitida através de diferentes espessuras de resinas compostas foi mensurada a partir de um dispositivo simples, o radiômetro manual, o qual estava calibrado para registrar a intensidade de luz apenas entre os comprimentos de onda entre 400 e 500 nm. A aferição da intensidade de luz através de radiômetros de mão difere significativamente daquela mensurada por medidores de potência laboratorial, contudo servem como um instrumento importante para monitorar o desempenho de fontes de luz 21,22 . Ainda, é preciso considerar que esses radiômetros manuais fornecem valores relativos e não absolutos a respeito da luz emitida pelos aparelhos fotopolimerizadores 22,23 .…”

“…A aferição da intensidade de luz através de radiômetros de mão difere significativamente daquela mensurada por medidores de potência laboratorial, contudo servem como um instrumento importante para monitorar o desempenho de fontes de luz 21,22 . Ainda, é preciso considerar que esses radiômetros manuais fornecem valores relativos e não absolutos a respeito da luz emitida pelos aparelhos fotopolimerizadores 22,23 . Assim, na presente pesquisa, este dispositivo foi empregado com o objetivo de demonstrar o comportamento das duas resinas, considerando diferentes resinas e espessuras.…”