Longitudinal craze line propagation in human root dentin after instrumentation with NiTi rotary files of different instrument tapers after long-term chewing simulation.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate whether file design and taper significantly influence microcrack initiation during machine preparation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty extracted teeth with straight single canals were selected. The teeth were randomly assigned to four groups based on their root canal anatomy and the corresponding NiTi rotary file system (I, Mtwo; II, ProTaper Universal; III, F6 SkyTaper; control, no preparation and filling). The root canals of the experimental groups were filled using the single-cone technique. The tested teeth were all subjected to a mechanical chewing simulation with flat lead loading over a period of 3 years (corresponding to 150,000 cycles). The teeth were checked for dentinal defects (accumulative crack growth in length) under the digital microscope (Keyence VHX-5000) at time 0 (baseline prior to chewing simulation) and after 3, 6, 12, 24, and 36 months of loading. The cumulative crack increase was statistically analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis test, Jonckheere-Terpstra test, and the Wilcoxon rank-sum test. The significance was set at p < 0.05. RESULTS: In contrast to preparation with greater-tapered instruments, ProTaper Universal (group II) and F6 SkyTaper (group III) instrumentation with the smaller tapered Mtwo files (group I) showed less accumulative propagation of craze lines (p < 0.05) at all time points. CONCLUSION: Instruments with greater taper for root canal instrumentation should be used with care to avoid negative long-term effects in the form of propagation of dentinal defects over time. A positive cutting-edge angle and a smaller taper have a positive effect on a lower craze line development. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Instruments with a positive cutting-edge angle and a smaller taper are beneficial for the long-term preservation of dentinal tooth structure.

Effects of various chair-side surface treatment methods on dental restorative materials with respect to contact angles and surface roughness.

Available chair-side surface treatment methods may adversely affect prosthetic materials and promote plaque accumulation. This study investigated the effects of treatment procedures on three resin restorative materials, zirconium-dioxide and polyetheretherketone in terms of surface roughness and hydrophobicity. Treatments were grinding with silicon carbide paper or white Arkansas stone, blasting with prophylaxis powder and polishing with diamond paste. Surface roughness was assessed using confocal laser scanning. Hydrophobicity as measured by water contact angle was determined by computerized image analysis using the sessile drop technique. All of the specific surface treatments performed led to significant changes in contact angle values and surface roughness (Ra) values. Median contact angle values ranged from 51.6° to 114°. Ra values ranged from 0.008 µm to 2.917 µm. Air-polishing as well as other polishing procedures increased surface roughness values in all materials except zirconium dioxide. Polyetheretherketone displayed greatest change in contact angle values after air-polishing treatment.

Comparison of design and torque measurements of various manual wrenches.

PURPOSE: Accurate torque application and determination of the applied torque during surgical and prosthetic treatment is important to reduce complications. A study was performed to determine and compare the accuracy of manual wrenches, which are available in different designs with a large range of preset torques. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirteen different wrench systems with a variety of preset torques ranging from 10 to 75 Ncm were evaluated. Three different designs were available, with a spring-in-coil or toggle design as an active mechanism or a beam as a passive mechanism, to select the preset torque. To provide a clinically relevant analysis, a total of 1,170 torque measurements in the range of 10 to 45 Ncm were made in vitro using an electronic torque measurement device. RESULTS: The absolute deviations in Ncm and percent deviations across all wrenches were small, with a mean of -0.24 ± 2.15 Ncm and -0.84% ± 11.72% as a shortfall relative to the preset value. The greatest overage was 8.2 Ncm (82.5%), and the greatest shortfall was 8.47 Ncm (46%). However, extreme values were rare, with 95th-percentile values of -1.5% (lower value) and -0.16% (upper value). A comparison with respect to wrench design revealed significantly higher deviations for coil and toggle-style wrenches than for beam wrenches. CONCLUSION: Beam wrenches were associated with a lower risk of rare extreme values thanks to their passive mechanism of achieving the selected preset torque, which minimizes the risk of harming screw connections.