About the book
Dental caries is a complex phenomenon involving internal defense factors, such as saliva, tooth surface morphology, general health, nutritional and hormonal status, and a number of external factors, for example, diet, microbial flora colonizing the teeth, oral hygiene, and fluoride availability. Dental caries is a complex and dynamic process where a multitude of factors influence and initiate the progression of the disease. Saliva is one of the most important biological factors in the etiology of the occurrence of caries, reducing and removing erosion substances from the mouth. Theoretically, saliva can affect caries in four general ways: mechanical cleansing, resulting in less accumulation of plaque, reducing enamel solubility by means of calcium, phosphate, and fluoride, buffering and neutralizing the acid produced by cariogenic organisms or introduced directly through diet, by anti-bacterial activity.
This book will be a self-contained collection of scholarly papers targeting an audience of practicing researchers, academics, Ph.D. students and other scientists. The contents of the book will be written by multiple authors and edited by experts in the field.
