Mechanical activation with Easy Clean device enhanced organic tissue removal from simulated internal root resorption in a laboratory evaluation.

BACKGROUND: Considering the irregular shape of the root canal, removing inflamed pulp and granulation tissue completely from internal resorption cavities during chemomechanical preparation can be challenging. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of passive ultrasonic irrigation (PUI) compared to mechanical activation with Easy Clean in the removal of organic tissue from simulated areas of internal root resorption. METHODS: The root canals of 72 extracted single-rooted teeth with oval canals were instrumented with Reciproc R25 instruments. After root canal preparations, the specimens were split longitudinally, and semicircular cavities were prepared using a round bur on each half of the roots. Samples obtained from bovine muscle tissue were weighed and adapted into semicircular cavities. The roots were reassembled and joined, and the teeth were divided into six groups (n = 12) according to the irrigation protocol: Sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) without activation; NaOCl + PUI; NaOCl + Easy Clean; distilled water without activation; distilled water + PUI; and distilled water + Easy Clean. After irrigation protocols, the teeth were disassembled, and the remaining organic tissue was weighed. Data were analyzed by two-way ANOVA and Tukey's post hoc test (p < 0.05). RESULTS: None of the experimental protocols totally removed the bovine tissue from simulated cavities. Tissue weight reduction was significantly affected by the activation method (p < 0.05) and by irrigation solution (p < 0.05). Groups with NaOCl irrigation presented higher tissue weight loss when compared to distilled water, for all irrigation methods (p < 0.05). The use of Easy Clean resulted in the greatest tissue weight loss (42.0%-Distilled water/45.5%- NaOCl) compared to those of PUI (33.3%-Distilled water/37.7%- NaOCl) and no activation (33.4%-Distilled water/38.8%- NaOCl) (p < 0.05). However, no differences were observed between PUI and no activation groups (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Mechanical activation with Easy Clean enhanced organic tissue removal from simulated internal resorption more effectively than PUI. Easy Clean for agitation of the irrigating solution is effective in removing simulated organic tissues from artificial internal resorption cavities, being an alternative to the use of PUI.

Effect of Sodium Thiosulfate on Interfacial Adaptation and Penetration of an Epoxy Resin-Based Root Canal Sealer.

Introduction: Our study evaluated the impact of sodium thiosulfate (ST) irrigation, subsequent to sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) and just before root canal filling, on the filling quality (interfacial adaptation and penetration segment) of an epoxy resin-based root canal sealer. Methods and Materials: Twenty single-rooted human teeth were prepared with the ProTaper system. The specimens were then divided into the following groups: 5.25% NaOCl irrigation (NaOCl group) and 5.25% NaOCl irrigation+0.5% sodium thiosulfate (NaOCl+ST group). The root canals were filled using single-cone technique with ProTaper F3 cones and AH-Plus sealer, labeled with rhodamine B dye to allow analysis under a confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). All samples were sectioned at 2, 4, and 6 mm from the apex and prepared for CLSM analysis. The percentage of voids, gaps and dentinal sealer penetration segment of the canal were calculated at the apical, middle and coronal thirds. The non-parametric Mann-Whitney statistical test was used at 5% significance level. Results: Higher percentage of gaps and voids were observed at all root thirds of the NaOCl group when compared to the NaOCl+ST group (P<0.05). There was a significant increase in the penetration segment of NaOCl+ST group at the coronal and middle root third when compared to the NaOCl group (P<0.05). Conclusion: Our in vitro results showed that the use of ST as an antioxidant agent after NaOCl irrigation promoted a better interfacial adaptation and penetration of epoxy resin-based root canal fillings.

Effect of low-level laser therapy on postoperative endodontic pain: An updated systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the influence of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) on postoperative pain after endodontic treatment. METHODS: The PICOS strategy was used to identify randomized clinical trials comparing low-level laser therapy and mock laser therapy to manage postoperative pain after endodontic treatment, retreatment, and endodontic surgery. An electronic search was performed in MEDLINE through PubMed, Web of Science, LILACS, Scopus and Cochrane Library, OpenGrey and Google Scholar. Quality assessment was performed using the Cochrane Collaboration's tool for assessing the risk of bias. The quality of evidence was rated on the basis of the GRADE approach. RESULTS: Twelve studies were included in the qualitative synthesis. Within the 12 studies, 7 articles were classified as "low risk of bias," 4 studies were considered "unclear risk of bias" and 1 study was considered "high risk of bias." Six studies evaluated the postoperative pain after primary root canal treatment, two studies after root canal retreatment and four after periapical surgery. Most of the studies reported significantly less postoperative pain after LLLT in different time periods; two studies found no differences. The certainty of evidence was classified as low and very low to treatment / retreatment and endodontic surgery, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the limited quality evidence, most of the included studies reported significantly less postoperative pain after LLLT. However, the lack of standardization in laser parameters, use of medications and the certainty of evidence classified as low and very low indicate the need for further studies.

Cleaning Ability of Irrigants and Orange Oil Solvent Combination in the Removal of Root Canal Filling Materials.

OBJECTIVE: This study investigated the influence of different irrigants and the use of orange oil solvent in the removal of filling materials during root canal retreatment. METHODS: Forty maxillary premolars were shaped using the ProTaper System up to file F3 (size 30, 0.09 taper) and filled by Tagger's hybrid technique using the AH Plus. Samples were randomly assigned to four groups (n=10) according to the irrigating protocol during endodontic retreatment with the ProTaper Universal Re-treatment System: G1, 2% chlorhexidine (CHX) gel; G2, 2% CHX gel with an orange oil solvent; G3, 5% sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl); and G4, 5% NaOCl with an orange oil solvent. Afterwards, the samples were longitu-dinally split into two halves, and the root wall images were prepared by scanning electron microscopy. Two pre-calibrated evaluators analyzed the images using a filling materials remnants score system. Data were statistically analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis and Dunn's tests (p<0.05). RESULTS: All samples had residual filling materials in the root canal walls after instrumentation. According to the presence of the filling material remnants in the total area of samples, the groups were ranked in the follow-ing order: G2=G4>G1=G3. No statistical differences were found when the CHX and NaOCl were used (p>0.05). Groups in which a solvent was used showed a less effective cleaning ability (p<0.05). The use of NaOCl with solvent presented the highest amounts of filling materials remnants in the critical apical area (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: The use of orange oil with NaOCl or CHX does not improve the removal of residual root canal filling materials.

Do HEMA-free adhesive systems have better clinical performance than HEMA-containing systems in noncarious cervical lesions? A systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: To determine through a systematic review whether HEMA-free adhesive systems have better clinical performance than HEMA-containing systems in noncarious cervical lesion (NCCL) restorations. SOURCES: We systematically searched PubMed, The Cochrane Library, Scopus, Web of Science, and Open Grey databases using MeSH terms, synonyms, and keywords, with no language or date restriction. The reference lists of included articles were manually searched. STUDY SELECTION: Randomized controlled clinical trials comparing the effectiveness of HEMA-free and HEMA-containing adhesive systems in NCCL restorations were included. The risk of bias in the included studies was assessed and classified through the Cochrane Collaboration's common scheme for bias. Quantitative data were subgrouped according to the main clinical parameters evaluated, and heterogeneity was tested using I2 index. DATA: A total of 2889 potentially relevant studies were identified. After title and abstract examination, 51 studies remained. Finally, 22 studies were included in the systematic review, totaling to 997 participants. Thus, 13 studies were classified as "low" risk of bias and nine as "unclear". These 22 studies were also included in the meta-analysis, and no significant statistical difference was found between the clinical performances of HEMA-free and HEMA-containing adhesive systems for all parameters analyzed: retention risk difference (RD) 0.03 [-0.01, 0.07] (p = 0.13); marginal discoloration RD 0.02 [-0.01, 0.04] (p = 0.19); marginal adaptation RD -0.01 [-0.04, 0.01] (p = 0.34); caries RD 0.00 [-0.01, 0.01] (p = 0.92); or postoperative sensitivity RD -0.00 [-0.02, 0.01] (p = 0.72) and for overall effect RD 0.00 [-0.01, 0.01] (p = 0.65). CONCLUSIONS: HEMA-free and HEMA-containing adhesive systems showed a similar clinical performance in NCCL restorations. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Only the presence of HEMA does not indicate better clinical performance of adhesive systems.