The development of Curodont, a liquid remineralisation treatment that is painted onto teeth lesions, at the very start of decay – before any holes have developed – has been made possible by Swiss entrepreneurs and investment.

At an unveiling event organised at the Swiss Embassy’s Business Hub in London, the room was buzzing with dentists, scientists and NHS big wigs, who had gathered to hear about a treatment which could potentially save billions for the NHS budget – not to mention a big sigh of relief for anyone who hates dentists drills – which I would imagine is most of us!

Curodont, the patented name for the treatment, was developed by scientists at Leeds University.  The most basic explanation is that it is a peptide matrix which when painted onto the tooth sticks to it, creating a scaffold which then attracts enamel building ingredients, such as calcium, from mouth saliva.  In effect the carie, which is the start of decay, is repaired within a 30-day timespan.

Dr Dominik Lysek, CEO of credentis ag, is a chemist, who tells me that they are currently awaiting the green light from the US health watchdog the Food & Drug Administration.  Curodont has already got a European CE mark which means that it complies with all current legislation.

“We didn’t want to market just another new product.  Our aim is to produce an entirely new treatment approach,” he tells me.

Though it is somewhat ironic that all the investment for this UK discovery has come from Switzerland.  “We would not have got funding in the UK,” he says.

One phial of Curodont costs about £40 and can treat three teeth.  Unfortunately, even though it appears fairly cheap, it is not cheap enough to use as a preventative protocol.

Dr Lysek explains that the new remineralisation matrix method  is suitable for treating young patients with an increased risk of caries, for instance because of orthodontic treatment.  And another target group are older people with exposed dentin.

Find out more at www.credentis.com