Caries Inhibition With CO2-Laser During Orthodontic Treatment

White spot lesions associated with orthodontic treatment are a common problem. The carbon dioxide laser is reported to be the most effective one in the prevention of dental caries. The study is designed as a randomized, split‐mouth controlled, clinical trial. The participants will be children aged 12‐18 years at high caries risk, requiring fixed orthodontic treatment. The vestibular surfaces of the maxillary anterior teeth of the eligible patients will be exposed to carbon dioxide laser irradiation in combination with fluoride therapy and fluoride therapy alone followed by bonding of orthodontic brackets. The patients will be recalled 6 and 12 months post‐irradiation. Outcome measures will be visual examination with the International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS) criteria and SoproLife ® Daylight and Blue fluorescence.