Objectives: Dental
caries on proximal tooth surfaces is still a problem
in many industrialized countries. The objectives of
this review were to present the scientific basis and
the principles of the resin infiltration concept, to
discuss the inherent clinical applications, and to
describe how these backgrounds can be integrated
into the concept of minimum intervention dentistry.
Data sources:
Data were identified by searches of the Cochrane
Registers, Medline, and Scopus. Papers published in
English and German up to October 2010 were selected
and most up-to-date or relevant references were
chosen. Crossreferencing of significant papers
identified additionally relevant articles written in
other languages and those of historical value.
Study selection:
A total of 18 in vitro studies (focusing on
penetration depths or demineralization prevention)
were found, and four clinical/ one in situ study
(involving 213 subjects) could be retrieved; these
studies were not comparable.
Conclusions: The clinical research evidence on the
resin infiltration technique currently is of
moderate extent to reach any decisive conclusions;
however, based on available laboratory and clinical
studies it seems convincing that resin infiltration
of enamel lesions should reduce (or even stop) the
progress of white spot lesions. Combining this
ultraconservative restorative approach (which is
considered microinvasive) with a substantial caries
remineralization program may provide therapeutic
benefits and significantly reduce both longterm
restorative needs and costs, thus complementing the
concept of minimum intervention dentistry.
Key words: enamel,
fluoride, minimum intervention dentistry,
remineralization, resin infiltration, subsurface
caries lesion
