The aim of this study was to evaluate the outcomes of teaching endodontics to undergraduate students at Riyadh Colleges. This study was undertaken by assessing the technical quality of root canal obturation and the presence of procedural errors in root canal treatment cases performed by the final year dental students in clinics. All of the root canal treatment cases performed by the final year dental students in the 2nd semester of 2012 to 2013 were examined, with a total of 450 root canals from 241 teeth. The quality of root canal obturation was examined in relation to the length of the root filling based on the radiographic apex, the density of the obturation according to the presence of voids, and the taper of root canal fillings. The overall acceptable quality of the evaluated root canals was 36%. Of these canals, acceptable length, density, and taper were reported in 76.6, 46.4, and 73.8%, respectively. Overall, 9.3% of the treated root canals had procedural errors, and majority of these errors were found in canals of posterior mandibular teeth. Apical transportation was the most encountered error; it was found in 3.1% of the treated canals. The technical quality of the root canal treatments conducted by the students in this study was comparable to other studies. However, introducing new techniques and armamentaria might improve this quality.

This study aimed to compare the analgesic effectiveness of virtual reality vs. topical anesthesia gel during the administration of local anesthesia (injections to numb the gums) in adult dental patients; as well as to determine which approach is preferred by the patients. Twenty-one adult patients received dental anesthetic injections bilaterally for their maxillary premolars area. We predicted that VR would be more effective than a topical anesthetic gel at reducing pain during injections into the gums. Using a within subject design, each patient received two injections during a single dental visit. Pain was measured after each injection. One side was of the mouth was injected under the influence of the topical anesthesia (TA) 20% benzocaine. The other side of the mouth was injected when the patient was in virtual reality (VR) watching an animated movie using an Oculus Quest® helmet to distract them during the other injection, treatment order randomized. Immediately after each injection, the patients were directed to rate their pain experience using the Wong-Baker Faces Pain-rating Scale (W-BFPS), and to choose which delivery system they preferred. Heart rates were recorded prior to and after the injections using a finger pulse oximeter. Participants reported the predicted pattern of a lower W-PFPS score (less pain intensity) during needle injection while in VR than the injection with topical anesthesia gel, however, the difference was not statistically significant. A statistically significant majority of the participants (p = 0.021) preferred VR to TA. No statistically significant difference heart rate during VR vs. TA was found. Although dental patients reported less pain during VR distraction vs. topical gel anesthetic, the difference was not significant. A statistically significant majority of patients preferred virtual reality over topical anesthesia during their future injections. However, no significant difference in heart rate was found.

Background/purpose. To assess the resistance to cyclic fatigue (CF) displayed by two nickel-titanium (NiTi) files, One Curve (OC) and ProTaper Gold (PTG), after their immersion in 2.5% sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) solution at body temperature. Materials and Methods. Forty-five files from each brand were randomly assigned to three groups (n = 15) and subjected to the following: no immersion (control), 1-minute immersion, and 5-minute immersion in 2.5% NaOCl at 37°C. CF for all the files was tested within a well-lubricated stainless-steel artificial canal in a water bath at 37°C simulating body temperature. The procedure was video recorded, and the number of cycles to fracture (NCF) was calculated by multiplying the time taken to fracture, with the number of rotations per second. The data were analyzed for normality, and thereafter, one-way ANOVA with multiple Bonferroni was used as the post hoc test. Results. The resistance to CF of OC files was significantly higher than PTG files in all groups. In groups immersed in NaOCl for one minute, OC files showed significant drop in the CF resistance; PTG files showed a drop as well but not significantly. Both files demonstrated a significant drop in resistance to CF after immersion in NaOCl for five minutes compared to the control group. Conclusion. OC files were significantly more resistant to CF compared to PTG in all groups. Immersion in 2.5% NaOCl for 5 minutes significantly reduced the resistance to CF for all the files.

Endodontic rotary files have been developed to improve the quality of root canal preparation. However, such instruments have a risk of separation. In most cases, the files are not checked for quality before use. Instead, they are often removed from the packages, sterilized and used without being examined for the presence of imperfections or debris. Practitioners were always to be blamed of such mishaps, but recently there has been some investigations claiming that these files are not flawless and far from perfection. A sample of 50 files from 5 companies were analyzed under scanning electron microscope (SEM) with 100× magnification and given to 3 blinded endodontic observers to investigate the presence of manufacturing defects. The products of these companies were: Protaper, K3fx, Easy Race, Wave One and Twisted File. All files from each company presented all the 6 categories of defects. Each file presented at least two types of defects. Significant variation was found between companies and defects (p value = 0.03). This study showed that all the brands that had been examined had manufacturing defects in addition to imperfection in packing conditions; however, the electropolished instruments had significantly less imperfection, particularly in term of grooves and scratches.

Introduction: A successful root canal treatment ensures complete sealing of the root canal to abstain from re-infections. The efficiency of antimicrobial activity of the sealers is important for achieving long term success in root canal therapy. Aim: This study compared the antibacterial properties of three calcium silicate-based root canal sealers against Enterococcus faecalis at varying incubation time periods. Materials and Methods: This in vitro cross sectional experimental study was designed with three root canal sealers, namely, Endosequence/BC Sealer, CeraSeal, and BioRoot RCS. Freshly mixed selars were placed in agar plates infused with Enterococcus faecalis. Incubation at 37°C under anaerobic conditions was done for 1 week, during which measurements of the inhibition zones were recorded at 24 h, 48 h, 72 h, and 7 days. Data were compared using ANOVA, and Tukey's tests (P < 0.05). Results and Discussion: Bacterial growth inhibition was demonstrated by all the sealers tested, with antimicrobial activity being highest for BioRoot RCS and least for CeraSeal. An increase in duration of incubation, positively affected the antimicrobial properties. Conclusion: Significant difference (P < 0.05) of bacterial inhibition was observed among different time duration of 24 h compared to 48 h, 72 h, and 7 days, for all tested materials. Moreover, BioRoot RCS showed significant bacterial inhibition to tested microorganism.