Mechanism of Metal Sensitization in Dental Patients and Dental Health Professionals

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There has been a notable increase in dermal and mucosal lesions due to various forms of metal allergens within our living environment. Number of such cases have been reported through mass media. Researcher and staff of dental field dealing with various types of dental alloys must have a right perspective and a thorough knowledge towards such disease. However, incidence rate nor mechanism of sensitization by dental alloys within an oral environment has not yet been revealed.In this study, the subjects were dental patients who have metal restorations, dental staff such as dentist, dental technician, or dental hygienist, and individuals who never had metal restorations or had a little chance to contact metals in their daily lives. Birth place, residential area for the recent 5 years, past history of any allergies and their symptoms, patch test results, oral conditions, and relationship between the presence of intraoral metal restorations and the sensitization rate by these metals were investigated for these subjects.An X-ray fluorescence spectroscope(XRFS) was used for the metal analysis in this study. Stability, detection limit, and the effects of different types of media towards the emitted X-ray were determined for the apparatus preceding its clinical application. The XRFS was proved to be capable of analyzing not only bulk metals, but also liquids, pastes, powders, leather goods, textiles, or those samples which require non-destructive analysis. Over 2500 samples collected from the intraoral metal restorations or living environments of the patients suspected as having metal allergies were analyzed to detect the metal allergens.