Measurement of pulp blood flow rates in maxillary anterior teeth using ultrasound Doppler flowmetry

Aim: To measure pulp blood flow rates of clinically normal maxillary anterior teeth of healthy adults using ultrasound Doppler flowmetry (UDF). Methodology: A total of 359 anterior teeth from 63 patients (mean age, 29.8 years; range, 22-52 years; 26 females and 36 males) were included. The data were collected according to tooth type (three groups: central incisors, lateral incisors and canines). An MM-D-K (Minimax, Moscow, Russia) ultrasound Doppler imaging instrument was used to measure pulp blood flow. Differences between the tooth types were analysed with one-way anova and a Bonferroni correction at the 95% confidence level. Results: The mean average linear velocities during the systolic period (Vams) of the central incisors, lateral incisors and canines were 0.58, 0.58 and 0.52 cm s^-1, respectively. There were no significant differences in the mean Vams between the tooth types (P > 0.05). Conclusions: Within the limitations of this study, the pulp blood velocities of clinically normal, maxillary anterior teeth of healthy adults were between 0.5 and 0.6 cm s^-1. There were no significant differences in mean blood flow rates between maxillary central incisors, lateral incisors and canines.