Effect of a low-level laser on bone regeneration after rapid maxillary expansion

Introduction: In this study, we evaluated the effects of a low-level laser on bone regeneration in rapid maxillary expansion procedures. Methods: Twenty-seven children, aged 8 to 12 years, took part in the experiment, with a mean age of 10.2 years, divided into 2 groups: the laser group (n=14), in which rapid maxillary expansion was performed in conjunction with laser use, and the no-laser group (n=13), with rapid maxillary expansion only. The activation protocol of the expansion screw was 1 full turn on the first day and a half turn daily until achieving overcorrection. The laser type used was a laser diode (TWIN Laser; MMOptics, Sao Carlos, Brazil), according to the following protocol: 780 nm wavelength, 40 mW power, and 10 J/cm(2) density at 10 points located around the midpalatal suture. The application stages were 1 (days 1-5 of activation), 2 (at screw locking, on 3 consecutive days), 3, 4, and 5 (7, 14, and 21 days after stage 2). Occlusal radiographs of the maxilla were taken with the aid of an aluminum scale ruler as a densitometry reference at different times: T1 (initial), T2 (day of locking), T3 (3-5 days after T2), T4 (30 days after T3), and T5 (60 days after T4). The radiographs were digitized and submitted to imaging software (Image Tool; UTHSCSA, San Antonio, Tex) to measure the optic density of the previously selected areas. To perform the statistical test, analysis of covariance was used, with the time for the evaluated stage as the covariable. In all tests, a significance level of 5% (P<0.05) was adopted. Results: From the evaluation of bone density, the results showed that the laser improved the opening of the midpalatal suture and accelerated the bone regeneration process. Conclusions: The low-level laser, associated with rapid maxillary expansion, provided efficient opening of the midpalatal suture and influenced the bone regeneration process of the suture, accelerating healing. (Am J Orthod Dentofacial Orthop 2012;141:444-50)

Transverse pseudo-nonlinear effects measured in solid-state laser materials using a sensitive time-resolved technique

We present a detailed study of the Baryscan technique, a new efficient alternative to the widespread Z-scan technique which has been demonstrated [Opt. Lett. 36:8, 2011] to reach among the highest sensitivity levels. This method is based upon the measurement of optical nonlinearities by means of beam centroid displacements with a position sensitive detector and is able to deal with any kind of lensing effect. This technique is applied here to measure pump-induced electronic refractive index changes (population lens), which can be discriminated from parasitic thermal effects by using a time-resolved Baryscan experiment. This method is validated by evaluating the polarizability variation at the origin of the population lens observed in the reference Cr3+:GSGG laser material.

The effect of low-level laser irradiation (In-Ga-Al-AsP - 660 nm) on melanoma in vitro and in vivo

Abstract Background It has been speculated that the biostimulatory effect of Low Level Laser Therapy could cause undesirable enhancement of tumor growth in neoplastic diseases. The aim of the present study is to analyze the behavior of melanoma cells (B16F10) in vitro and the in vivo development of melanoma in mice after laser irradiation. Methods We performed a controlled in vitro study on B16F10 melanoma cells to investigate cell viability and cell cycle changes by the Tripan Blue, MTT and cell quest histogram tests at 24, 48 and 72 h post irradiation. The in vivo mouse model (male Balb C, n = 21) of melanoma was used to analyze tumor volume and histological characteristics. Laser irradiation was performed three times (once a day for three consecutive days) with a 660 nm 50 mW CW laser, beam spot size 2 mm2, irradiance 2.5 W/cm2 and irradiation times of 60s (dose 150 J/cm2) and 420s (dose 1050 J/cm2) respectively. Results There were no statistically significant differences between the in vitro groups, except for an increase in the hypodiploid melanoma cells (8.48 ± 1.40% and 4.26 ± 0.60%) at 72 h post-irradiation. This cancer-protective effect was not reproduced in the in vivo experiment where outcome measures for the 150 J/cm2 dose group were not significantly different from controls. For the 1050 J/cm2 dose group, there were significant increases in tumor volume, blood vessels and cell abnormalities compared to the other groups. Conclusion LLLT Irradiation should be avoided over melanomas as the combination of high irradiance (2.5 W/cm2) and high dose (1050 J/cm2) significantly increases melanoma tumor growth in vivo.