Retreatment Efficacy of Propoint and Guttapercha - A Cone Beam Computed Tomography Analysis.

Introduction: The present study aimed to evaluate the amount of residual material after retreatment of propoint (DRFP Ltd. Stamford, UK) and gutta-percha obturated using smart paste bio sealer (DRFP Ltd. Stamford, UK), considering gutta-percha and AH Plus (Dentsply Maillefer, Ballaigues, Switzerland) as the standard for comparison. Methods: Forty five single rooted teeth were instrumented using rotary files (F3, Protaper, Dentsply Maillefer, Ballaigues, Switzerland). Obturation was done with three different materials (n=15); group 1, Propoint with smart paste bio, group 2, gutta-percha with smart paste bio and group 3, gutta-percha with AH Plus. Teeth were scanned by cone beam computed tomography to measure the volume of obturation material. After three months of storage, retreatment was performed (Protaper universal rotary retreatment files, Dentsply Maillefer, Ballaigues, Switzerland). Second scan of cone beam computed tomography was taken to evaluate the residual filling material. Group comparisons were performed using one way ANOVA and Post-Hoc Tukey test HSD test (P=0.05). Results: There was no statistically significant difference between the three groups (P<.05), in the residual filling material. Conclusions: In conclusion, the results of this study indicate that the obturation material could not be removed completely in all the three groups. There was no significant difference in the retreatment efficacy between propoint and gutta-percha.

Effect of irrigants using ultrasonics on intracanal calcium hydroxide removal – an in vitro comparative evaluation

Aim: To evaluate the efficacy of various irrigating solutions on calcium hydroxide (Apex cal andRC cal) removal with the use of ultrasonics. Methods: The root canals of 120 single-rootedmaxillary central incisors were prepared using the stepback technique. The teeth were decoronatedand split longitudinally. After filling, the two halves of roots were reassembled with sticky wax andeach group was further divided into four subgroups according to the irrigating solution: SmearClear, 10% citric acid, 5% EDTA and 3% NaOCl. Evaluation for cleanliness was done under amicroscope with ×12.5 magnification. Statistical analysis was done with Kruskal Wallis and MannWhitney tests at 5% level of significance. Results: There was no statistically significant difference(p>0.05) for calcium hydroxide (Apex Cal and RC Cal) removal by different irrigants. There weremore residues in the apical groove than in the coronal groove (p<0.05). Conclusions: Whenthe different irrigants were compared at coronal and apical levels, Smear Clear and citric acidwere more effective in calcium hydroxide removal than EDTA and NaOCl.