Evaluation of Different Decalcifying Agents on Oral Hard Tissues: A Comparative Study

Introduction Decalcification of bone and teeth is often an essential and important step during tissue processing. The rate of decalcification and the effect of various decalcifying agents on the tissue and their staining characteristics are two important parameters influencing the selection of decalcifying solutions. Some decalcifying agents, although they completely and rapidly remove the calcium ions also adversely affect the staining characteristics and may cause damage to the organic components. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of the commonly used demineralizing agents to identify the best decalcifying agent. Materials and Methods Three decalcifying agents namely, 10% nitric acid, 10% hydrochloric acid and 10% formic acid were used to decalcify 30 natural teeth. The endpoint of decalcification was evaluated by physical and chemical methods. The decalcified teeth were subjected to routine processing and staining with hematoxylin and eosin stains. Result Formic acid of 10% was the most considerate to the hard tissues and 10% hydrochloric acid was the least considerate to the tooth structure. Conclusion Formic acid of 10% though being the slowest decalcifying agent, gave excellent results for soft-tissue integrity and staining characteristics.