Chemical and Visual Changes in Tooth Enamel Caused by Lactic Acid and Hydrofluoric Acid

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Abstract
Tooth slices from unerupted human teeth were subjected to the intermittent effects of 0.007-0.009N lactic- and hydrofluoric-acids buffered by their Na salts to a pH of 4.0-4.2. There was no direct association between visual changes in enamel and the amount of P removed. Both buffers removed P from the tooth surface; lactic-acid caused whitening of the normal tooth enamel, while hydrofluoric-acid caused no visible alteration. If applied to enamel whitened by prior exposure to lactic-acid, hydrofluoric-acid dissolved the whitened area. Hydrofluoric-acid provided a temporary protection against subsequent exposure to lactic-acid, as evidenced by a decreased Ph dissolution and a delay in whitening of the enamel.

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