Laser Doppler Flowmetry (LDF) is a diagnostic modality which enables dental clinicians to evaluate the presence and the grade of bloodflow in tissues in an objective manner. In dentistry it is used mainly to determine the state of dental pulp, particularly in younger patients after trauma. The paper presents a case in which the use of LDF made it possible to choose the appropriate way of treatment of an adult patient who reported to the Outpatient Clinic at the Dept. of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics for consultation and treatment of a chronic apical periodontitis lesion within the anterior maxillary teeth. Routine diagnostic examinations (radiography, pulp vitality tests) suggested that the lesion was associated with the tooth 11. However, LDF readings clearly indicated pulp necrosis in tooth 12. After conventional endodontic treatment had been performed on the tooth 12, the lesion resolved completely within 3 months. The case report shows that additional diagnostic methods that are not routinely used may prove useful for choosing the right therapeutic approach in difficult cases in which the clinical picture does not match the results of additional tests.

Key words: endodontics, Laser Doppler Flowmetry, chronic apical periodontitis.