Precision of hand-held dental radiometers

The intensity of light within the wavelengths of 400 to 500 nm on a dental photocurable resin restorative material is a vital factor affecting many of the physical and chemical properties of the resulting restoration. This paper compares the precision of two recently introduced hand-held radiometers. The results indicate that the response of both hand-held meters was linear. For a given amount of decrease in light source intensity, both hand-held units responded with a corresponding decrement in measured intensity value. Both hand-held meters were found to limit their pass band of intensity readings between 400 and 515 nm, making them very useful clinical instruments. However, the absolute intensity readings between the two units were significantly different.