Effect of simulated pulpal microcirculation on intrapulpal temperature changes following application of heat on tooth surfaces

AIM: To evaluate ex vivo whether a simulated pulpal microcirculation inside a pulp chamber influenced intrapulpal temperature rise following application of heat on tooth surfaces. METHODOLOGY: An ex vivo model that allowed the circulation of 37 degrees C warm water inside the pulp chamber of an extracted human tooth was designed. The experimental model resembled pulpal microcirculation. After application of specific thermal stimuli for 30 s to the external surface of 15 maxillary central incisors, lateral incisors and canines, temperature changes were measured in the pulp chamber. The Greenhouse-Geisser and Bonferroni tests were used for analysis of the data. The level of significance was set at 0.05. RESULTS: Significant differences were found in all three groups of teeth between temperature measurements with or without intrapulpal water flow. Additionally, temperature changes resulting from the application of different stimuli to the group of lateral incisors were significantly greater compared with the other groups of teeth (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The importance of the cooling effect of simulated pulp microcirculation in the thermal behaviour of the dentine was established. Thickness of tooth tissue influenced significantly pulp temperature rise ex vivo.