ABSTRACT
Background and objectives : To evaluate the efficacy of chemo-mechanical method (carisolv) of caries removal with that of hand cutting and rotary cutting instruments with the help of knoop hardness measurements of the cavity floor. Method : The 45 carious molars were subjected to caries detector (Kavo DIAGNOdent) to assess the extent of the lesion before and after the study. The selected samples was divided into 4 groups of 15 teeth each. The first 3 groups were taken as study group Group I (Carisolv), Group II (Hand excavation), Group III (Carbide bur), and Group IV (Control). The treated cavities were cross-sectioned perpendicularly along the long axis of the tooth through the middle of the treated cavity and then subjected to knoop hardness test. Results : The knoop hardness of the remaining dentin thickness was least for group II (hand excavation) and highest excavation for control group IV (normal dentin), group I (carisolv) and group III (carbide bur) showed KHN values that was not statistically significant when compared to group IV. On comparing group I with group III the KHN of remaining dentin thickness of group III was more than group I but this was not statistically significant. Conclusion : It was thus concluded that group II (hand excavation) showed the least knoop hardness value and group I (carisolv) and group III (bur) showed similar to that of normal dentin although values of group III was more than group I but it was not statistically significant.