This study investigated the use of shea butter as an optical clearing agent (OCA) to improve optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging for early caries detection in ex-vivo human teeth. The research aimed to determine whether shea butter could enhance the contrast and clarity of OCT images, thereby aiding in the differentiation of healthy and demineralized enamel regions.she a butter was applied to the occlusal surfaces of extracted (molar) posterior teeth, and Swept Source OCT was utilized to generate two-dimensional cross-sectional images. Quantitative changes in optical attenuation coefficients and visual contrast between images captured before and after OCA application were analyzed to evaluate the effects of shea butter on imaging quality.the application of shea butter as an OCA enhanced the contrast and clarity of OCT images, particularly in distinguishing healthy from demineralized enamel. The penetration depth of OCT increased ~ 400 μm and an overall increase in contrast of 30 dB is observed in the B-scans for both sound and carious tooth, offering a more comprehensive view of microstructure. Quantitative analysis revealed significant variations in the average attenuation coefficient between carious and healthy enamel regions.shea butter, a biocompatible agent, shows promise as an effective OCA for enhancing OCT imaging in dentistry. This approach could improve the early detection of carious lesions, leading to less invasive treatment options. Enhanced OCT imaging with shea butter enables better visualization of early carious lesions, facilitating preventive care, preserving tooth structure, and reducing treatment complexity.
Keywords: Dental caries; Diagnostic imaging; Optical clearing agent; Optical coherence tomography.
© 2025. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag London Ltd., part of Springer Nature.
