Dentistry

Abstract

Displacement Of Apical Plugs Fabricated From Calcium Hydroxide Paste In Three Root Canal Filling Techniques

Orosco FA, Pereira LCG, Bernardineli N, Garcia RB, Bramante CM, Duarte MAH and De Moraes IG

Objective: The present study evaluated the displacement of calcium hydroxide apical plugs in the root canals of teeth with enlarged apical foramens subjected to three filling techniques: lateral condensation, a hybrid method, and a thermoplastic technique (Ultrafil).
Methods: The root canals of 30 extracted single-rooted human teeth were drilled in reverse order with no. 1-5 Gates-Glidden drills using a crown-down technique until the no. 1 drill passed through the apical foramen. The specimens were prepared with K files, beginning with a 50 K file and progressing until a 90 K file was visible 1 mm beyond the apex. Apical plugs were fabricated from calcium hydroxide paste, and the specimens were stored at 37°C at 100% humidity for 3 days. They were allocated into three experimental groups (n=10) according to the root canal technique. After filling, the specimens were incubated for 48 h at 37°C and longitudinally sectioned to assess apical plug displacement. Data was analysed by Kruskall-Wallis and Dun´s tests.
Results: The hybrid method caused the largest average apical plug displacement (1.96 mm), followed by the lateral condensation technique (0.85 mm) and the Ultrafil system (0.59 mm).
Conclusions: According to the results obtained in this study, when a 5mm apical plug is fabricated using L & C paste, filling of the remaining root canal can be performed with lateral condensation technique, hybrid method or Ultrafill.