Clinical Evaluation and Microbiological Assessment of Diode Laser and Chemical Disinfection in Comparison to Selective Caries Removal

After collecting the first sample of dentin as described above, the cavity will be disinfected using Diode laser (EPIC™, BIOLASE) with 940 nm and an output power of 0.5 watt (24). A 400 µm noninitiated tip will be used for cavity irradiation, in a noncontact mode (2mm distance), 5 sec/mm2 in sweeping motion. A 2nd dentinal sample will be collected after diode laser disinfection.

After collecting the first sample of dentin, the cavity will be disinfected using 2% Chlorhexidine (Consepsis®, Ultradent) for 20 seconds (32). Then a 2nd dentinal sample will be collected after chemical disinfection.