Background. This study aimed to investigate the endodontic debridement efficacy of different sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) irrigation regimens with and without ultrasonic agitation, followed by ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) via scanning electron microscopy (SEM) after using a rotary instrumentation system. Methods. Mandibular premolars (n=50) were randomly divided into five experimental groups (n=10) for root canal instrumentation with ProTaper Universal rotary system up to F3. The root canal system was treated with intracanal-heated NaOCl (100°C) or preheated NaOCl (55°C), followed by ultrasonic agitation and EDTA treatment. Samples irrigated with conventional needle irrigation (CNI) using normal saline solution were used as controls. Debridement efficacy was analyzed by SEM. A five-point scale was used to estimate the presence/absence of debris for each canal segment (coronal, middle, and apical). The results were analyzed using one-way ANOVA and post hoc Tukey tests (P<0.05). Results. The experimental groups exhibited less debris compared to CNI with saline (P<0.05). The amount of debris decreased significantly for the group with NaOCl intracanal heating compared to extraoral heating. Ultrasonic agitation further enhanced the root canal debridement efficacy of NaOCl. Conclusion. In summary, intracanal heating of NaOCl with and without ultrasonic agitation followed by EDTA appears to be a promising method to flush debris from the root canal system.

Background Endodontic sealers with antimicrobial properties can be advantageous as they would cope better with persisting residual infection and bacteria reentering from the oral cavity. Hence we compare   the  antimicrobial activity  of  three  endodontic  sealers  AH  Plus, Apexit plus and MTA Fillapex on Enterococcus Faecalis, Staphylococcus Aureus and Candida Albicans. Material and Method : Antimicrobial activity of the materials was evaluated by the method of agar diffusion. A base layer of 10 ml of Mueller Hinton agar was poured in Petri plates (90 x 15 mm). Three wells of 6 mm of diameter (one for each material) were obtained by removing a standardized portion of the agar in equidistant points with the aid of sterilized plastic straw. The wells were immediately filled with the sealers to be evaluated. The endodontic sealers AH Plus, Apexit Plus and MTA Fillapex were prepared according to the manufacturer’s instruction. Inhibition halos formed around the wells were measured with the aid of a millimetric rule with 0.5 mm of accuracy. All the experiments were repeated three times in different moments Results :Antimicrobial action of AH Plus was superior to that of Apexit Plus and MTA Fillapex against all the tested microorganisms p < 0.05).

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