Emerging Dental Applications of Raman Spectroscopy

Abstract

Until recently, the application of Raman spectroscopy to investigate dental tissues has primarily focused on using microspectroscopy to characterize dentin and enamel structures as well as to understand the adhesive interface of various resin and bonding agents used in restorative procedures. With the advent of improved laser, imaging/mapping and fibre optic technologies, the applications have expanded to investigate various biomedical problems ranging from oral cancer, bacterial identification and early dental caries detection. The overall aim of these applications is to develop Raman spectroscopy into a tool for use in the dental clinic. This chapter presents the recent dental applications of Raman spectroscopy as well as discusses the potential, strengths and limitations of the technology in comparison with alternative techniques. In addition, a discussion and rationale about combining Raman spectroscopy with other optical techniques will be included.