Can diode laser 810 nm decrease post endodontic pain in patients with asymptomatic necrotic maxillary incisors? A four-arm randomized controlled trial.

AIM: To find the best method for applying the diode laser 810 nm to relieve post-endodontic pain on necrotic maxillary incisors with periapical lesions within a single-visit treatment. METHODS: Eighty patients with a necrotic incisor, diagnosed with asymptomatic apical periodontitis, received standardized cleaning and shaping procedures, then divided randomly with a 1:1:1:1 allocation ratio into four groups: Group 1: control group with no laser application, Group 2: applying the diode laser as an irrigation activation system (IAS), Group 3: applying the diode laser from the buccal and palatal mucosa, Group 4: applying the diode laser as an IAS and from buccal and palatal mucosa. The postoperative pain was assessed using the visual analog scale (VAS) 1, 3, 7, and 14 days after the treatment. The mean values of the VAS score were statistically analyzed used Kruskal-Walis and Mann-Whitney U tests. The level of significance was set at a = 0.05. RESULTS: During 14 days after treatment, there was a statistically significant difference between mean values of VAS scores in the four groups (P value < 0.05); Group 1 scored the highest score, whereas Group 4 showed the lowest one. Moreover, Group 4 showed favorable outcomes compared with Group 2 and Group 3 during the first three days after treatment. CONCLUSION: Diode laser reduced postoperative pain after necrotic teeth with large-sized apical lesion treatment, whereas using diode laser either as an IAS or LLLT reduced the postoperative pain compared with the control group. Moreover, the usage of a diode laser in both previous techniques represents the best protocol for postoperative pain relief during 14 days of treatment. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The clinical significance of this study is to investigate the best method to reduce postoperative pain using diode lasers 810 nm; where the results of this study indicated that the more diode laser exposer in LLLT and IAS, the less postoperative pain after endodontic procedures.

The effect of the irrigant activation protocol on postoperative pain in maxillary incisors with asymptomatic apical periodontitis: A three-arm randomized clinical trial.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to compare the effects of three irrigation activation systems (IAS) on postoperative pain (PP) in activating three final irrigants: sodium hypochlorite 5.25%, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid 17%, and chlorhexidine 2%. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This parallel randomized clinical trial included referred patients with asymptomatic large-sized apical lesion incisors. A standard method was followed in the canal cleaning and shaping for all included patients in the study. Then, the patients were randomly assigned (1:1 allocation) into three groups: G1 (n = 20) with passive ultrasonic irrigation activation; G2 (n = 20) with XP-Endo Finisher file activation; and G3 (n = 20) with diode laser (810 nm) activation. PP was estimated in all groups using a visual analog scale after 1, 3, 7, and 14 days of treatment. Comparisons between the groups were made using the Kruskal-Wallis test, whereas the Mann-Whitney U test was used in the pairwise comparisons. RESULTS: Sixty patients were followed-up in this trial. There were significant differences between the groups in terms of PP After 1, 3, and 7 days of treatment (p = 0.002, p = 0.017, and p = 0.006, respectively). On the first day of treatment, G3 showed the lowest PP compared with G1 and G2 (p = 0.007 and p = 0.001, respectively). On the third day of treatment, G3 showed less PP compared with G2 (p = 0.005). On the seventh day of treatment, G2 showed the highest PP compared with G1 and G3 (p = 0.012 and p = 0.003, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The XP-Endo Finisher file caused the highest PP level especially in the next day and 3 days of the treatment, whereas the diode laser had the lowest PP level during the first week of treatment. It is noteworthy that PP disappeared completely after 2 weeks of treatment with all three IASs. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The trial was registered in the ISRCTN registry (Trial ID: SRCTN99457940).

Evaluation of a Novel Tool for Apical Plug Formation during Apexification of Immature Teeth.

The purpose of this study was to compare the sealing ability and time required for the formation of Biodentine and mineral trioxide aggregation (MTA) apical plugs, using three different delivery methods: an amalgam carrier (AC), the Micro Apical Placement (MAP) System or a novel tool using a modified cannula (MC). Materials and Methods: A total of 60 uniformed molar roots were divided into three main groups, according to the technique of apical plug formation: AC, MAP, and MC. Each group was divided into two subgroups, according to the filling material used: MTA and Biodentine. A timer was used to calculate the required time for apical plug formation. After setting the filling materials, the apical microleakage of the formed plugs was quantified using the dye extraction method and spectrophotometry. The differences between the groups were analyzed using the one-way ANOVA and LSD post hoc tests. The significance level was set at 0.05. Results: No significant differences were reported in the time required to form the apical plugs in all groups (p > 0.05). However, the apical plugs formed by the AC method had significantly higher microleakage than those formed using the MAP and MC methods (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Within the limitations of this study, the sealing ability of the apical plugs formed by the MC method is comparable to the MAP method and better than the AC method.

Dental Care for a Child with Congenital Hydrocephalus: A Case Report with 12-Month Follow-Up.

Hydrocephalus affects the central nervous system as a result of progressive ventricular dilatation from the accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid in the brain's lateral ventricles. This paper reports on the oral characteristics of a child with congenital hydrocephalus, discusses her complex dental care needs, and presents dental management of this case. Despite the complex and challenging dental needs, this child received dental treatment in a chairside approach without general anesthesia. A thorough knowledge of the patient's medical condition, together with expert clinical skills, was indispensable for managing the child and improving the quality and length of her life.

An Evaluation of Er:YAG Laser in an Intact Enamel Treatment on Bonding to the Resin Cement Compared to Four Traditional Techniques.

AIM OF STUDY: Evaluation of the bond strength of the resin cement after enamel conditioning with erbium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet laser compared to other four different techniques. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study consisted of 50 enamel specimens excluded from the smooth surfaces of newly extracted human 3rd molars. The specimens were randomly divided into five groups in terms of the enamel treatment technique. Each group (n = 10) was conditioned differently by bevel and acid etching group (I), acid etching technique group (II), double acid etching technique group (III), air abrasion followed by acid etching group (IV), and Er:YAG laser followed by acid etching group (V). After enamel treatment, a resin cylinder was installed using split Teflon matrix on each enamel specimen. Then the specimens were exposed to a shear strength device, and shear force was applied. The results were recorded with Newton. The required data were collected and statistically analyzed. A one-way ANOVA test was conducted to compare the five study groups using SPSS version 21 (p < 0.05). RESULTS: All groups showed high shear bond strength values ranging from 19.26 MPa (for group III) to 27.05 MPa (for group V). The enamel treatment with Er:YAG laser followed by acid etching gave the best results with significant differences compared to the other groups. CONCLUSION: Within the limitations of the present study, it can be concluded that the combination between the Er:YAG laser and the acid etching enhances the bond strength of resin cement with the enamel. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The use of Er:YAG laser followed by acid etching can be a successful technique for enamel conditioning and the results showed their superiority over the other groups.