Sealants are a safe and painless way of protecting your teeth from tooth decay. A sealant is a protective plastic coating, which is applied to the biting surfaces of the back teeth. The sealant forms a hard shield that keeps food and bacteria from getting into the tiny grooves in the teeth and causing decay.

1. BY :Dr.Milan Singh Mali
Post graduate student

6. In the 1960s a mixture of cyanoacrylate, polymethylmethacrylate and an inorganic powder was used as a sealing
material

7. Pits and Fissures are enamel faults narrow
shafts or cracks of some length
whose blind end are directed more or
less towards the dentinoenamel junction
Grooves are the linear depression form by
perfect joining of different lobes
On the basis of shape
Nango (1960) in his studies shown 4
principal types of fissures
V shape
U shape
I shape
K type

8. The shallow wide tends to be self cleansable and somewhat
caries resistant
Deep narrow I shape fissure are
quite constricted and resemble a
bottleneck .They have a narrow slit
like opening with a larger base
which extend towards DEJ

9. Susceptible to caries

16. Primary molar sealant application
First permanent molar
Second permanent molars

23. First, a narrow zone of enamel is removed by etching In
this plaque and pellicles are dissolved
This zone is 10 μm in depth
The second zone is qualitative porous zone, which is
20 μm in depth. Because of the porosities created, this
zone may be distinguished qualitatively from enamel by
polarized light microscopy.
The third zone is quantitative porous zone with small
porosities and is 20 μm deep.

30. Garcia Godoy (1997) found out that all the fluoridated
sealant had the greatest amount of fluoride release by
24 hours after mixing and the fluoride release declined
sharply thereafter.
Cooley et al. (1990) and Hicks et al. (1992) conducted
lab studies and concluded that fluoride release dips
considerably as the days go by. But, they showed that 60
percent reduction in secondary caries and enhanced degree
of caries resistance was seen.

31. This type of sealant is esthetic and
difficult to detect in recall visit
The sealant is clear to begin with but after
polymerization it changes its color. The degree
of color change is also an indicator of its
setting and adequate polymerization . Easy to
see during placement and recall

32. Through the use of a UV pen light, this sealant fluoresces a
blue/white color
The fluorescent glow provides clinicians with a visual
verification of the sealant margins at the time of placement
and offers the easiest way to verify retention and inspect
margins during patient recall appointments
This is the first pit and fissure sealant resin that can be
applied in a moist field.
It forms a unique resin acid-integrating network (RAIN)
that improves penetration into pits and fissures and
provides superior sealing of the margins.
It bonds chemically and micromechanically to the moist
tooth, integrating with the tooth structure to create
a strong, margin-free bond that virtually eliminates
microleakage.

33. It is a light-cured sealant that contains the “smart
material” amorphous calcium phosphate (ACP) that is
more resilient and flexible, creating a stronger, long lasting
sealant.
ACP is referred to as a “smart material” because it only
releases calcium and phosphate ions when the pH drops
to 5.9. Once the calcium phosphate is released, it will
act to neutralize the acid and buffer the PH.
ACP acts as reinforcement to the tooth’s natural defense
system only when it is needed
This is a new sealant developed which combines the best
properties of nearly all sealants. Some of its major properties are
hydrophilic chemistry, advanced adhesive technology, fluorescent
properties, thixotrophic viscosity, BPA-free formula.