Ultrasound May Help Regrow Teeth

More interesting stuff from my research.
Well they finally found two good uses for ultrasound (it sucks for chronic px)
It has been used to acclerate bone healing in fractures but now new evidence would suggest it can regrow and help repair teeth and their roots
Joy for hockey players everywhere

Ultrasound may help regrow teeth
Hockey players, rejoice! A team of University of Alberta researchers has created technology to regrow teeth--the first time scientists have been able to reform human dental tissue.

Using low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS), Dr. Tarak El-Bialy from the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry and Dr. Jie Chen and Dr. Ying Tsui from the Faculty of Engineering have created a miniaturized system-on-a-chip that offers a non-invasive and novel way to stimulate jaw growth and dental tissue healing.

"It's very exciting because we have shown the results and actually have something you can touch and feel that will impact the health of people in Canada and throughout the world," said Chen, who works out of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and the National Institute for Nanotechnology.

The wireless design of the ultrasound transducer means the miniscule device will be able to fit comfortably inside a patient's mouth while packed in biocompatible materials. The unit will be easily mounted on an orthodontic or "braces" bracket or even a plastic removable crown. The team also designed an energy sensor that will ensure the LIPUS power is reaching the target area of the teeth roots within the bone. TEC Edmonton, the U of A's exclusive tech transfer service provider, filed the first patent recently in the U.S. Currently, the research team is finishing the system-on-a-chip and hopes to complete the miniaturized device by next year.

"If the root is broken, it can now be fixed," said El-Bialy. "And because we can regrow the teeth root, a patient could have his own tooth rather than foreign objects in his mouth."
www.eurekalert.org...

I thought ultra sound damages tissue....Interesting post though.

who told you ultrasound damaged tissue?
It is used for many diagnostic imaging scans as well as theraputic ultrasound in physiotherapy/chiropractic clinics.
I imagine if a theraputic ultrasound was left on too long that would certainly not be theraputic.

Originally posted by sevenelizabeth
I thought ultra sound damages tissue....Interesting post though.

depends mostly on amplitude, that's why it's called Low Intensity Pulsed Ultrasound.

just for cross-reference: www.abovetopsecret.com...

it's certainly interesting, but so far i haven't had much luck bringing it to dentists' attention. inertia and 'wave-phobia', probably. who knows, i would certainly try it if confronted with either tooth loss or root canal surgery - if it was available somwhow.