Caries is a progressive demineralization of hard tooth tissues. It is expressed in the destruction of enamel, dentin, tooth cement and the formation of a carious cavity in the future. Tooth decay begins with caries from early childhood. In the development of caries, external factors (nutrition, oral hygiene), heredity and the state of the organism as a whole (immune, digestive systems), and the presence of stress factors are of great importance.
Caries develops as a result of the vital activity of bacteria, mainly streptococci, abundantly contained in mild dental plaque. If it is not removed in time, the bacteria begin to multiply vigorously and produce lactic acid, which washes away fluoride and calcium from the tooth enamel.
According to the clinical manifestations, caries is divided into 4 stages:
spot stage
surface
average
deep
A typical sign of caries is the occurrence of pain from chemical, temperature irritants. Treatment of caries is to replace the defect in the hard tissues of the tooth with a filling material, after preliminary excision of the pathologically changed tooth tissues.