HOW TO AVOID DENTAL TOXICITY
Serum Biocompatibility testing was developed to determine how much of an immune reaction a particular client will have to any given material.
A blood sample is drawn and spun on a centrifuge in order to separate the blood cells from the blood serum. The cells are discarded and the serum, which contains all of the free-floating antibodies and other blood proteins, is collected for testing. A small sample of the serum is then mixed with the individual chemical components that may be found in dental materials. If the chemicals would cause an immune reaction in the body, then the antibodies present in the serum will bind the chemicals and form proteins making the mixture look cloudy.
This is known as a protein fallout reaction. A simple but elegant machine called a light densitometer is then used to measure the opacity of each serum-chemical mixture, and the chemical is then judged according to protocols originally developed by Dr. Hal Huggins and refined over decades of testing. For the dentist’s convenience the classifications “Highly Reactive,” “Moderately Reactive,” and “Least Reactive,” are used to aid in understanding the results. Each product on the test is then rated by the highest reactivity level among its component chemicals. This assures that only the products in which all components give the lowest reaction levels are termed “Least Reactive.”
