Sodium hypochlorite and its use as root canal irrigant: a survey among ghanaian dental practitioners

Background: The majority of endodontic treatment in Ghana is provided by general dental practitioners due to the absence of specialists in endodontics. Sodium hypochlorite has been described as one of the commonly used irrigation solutions during endodontic treatment. However, there are no published reports on its use in Ghana. Aim: The study was to determine the proportion of Ghanaian dental practitioners who have used sodium hypochlorite for irrigation and the concentrations they usually use. Materials and methods: Self -administered questionnaires were mailed to dental practitioners in private clinics, government hospitals and clinics, teaching hospitals and training institutions across the country between December 2015 and March 2016. The collated data was analyzed using Microsoft Excel 2010 and SPSS 20.0.Results: The most commonly used root canal irrigant was 2.5% Sodium Hypochlorite (Milton®). This was routinely used by 31 (73.7%) of the respondents as root canal irrigant while normal saline solution was used regularly by only 6(15.8%) respondents. The various concentrations of sodium hypochlorite used were 0.5%, 2.5%,1%and 5.0%; with the following percentage-use respectively, 42.9%, 32.1%,21.4%and 6.1%. Three (10.7%) respondents had reported experiencing some complications with the use of sodium hypochlorite. Conclusion: Sodium hypochlorite is the most commonly used root canal irrigant by dental practitioners in Ghana. The concentrations usually used ranges between 0.5% and 5.0%