AN In-vitro EVALUATION OF ACCURACY OF THREE ELECTRONIC APEX LOCATORS IN THE PRESENCE OF 3% SODIUM HYPOCHLORITE
SUDHA B. MATTIGATTI *
Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, School of Dental Sciences, Karad-415110, Maharashtra, India.
VAISHALI MASHALKAR
Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, School of Dental Sciences, Karad-415110, Maharashtra, India.
HARSH RAMESH PATWARDHAN
Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, School of Dental Sciences, Karad-415110, Maharashtra, India.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
The condition known as the variation of the apical foramen and asymmetrical root canal opening is identified when the main foramen of the root canal is not situated at the anatomical apex. Under these conditions, it is possible to determine the working length incorrectly, which might result in many issues that could compromise the effectiveness of the endodontic procedure. In this work, we examined the apical foramen detection accuracies of these three EALs in 3% sodium hypochlorite (NaClO).
Materials and Procedures: To clean the teeth and remove organic material stuck to the exterior root surfaces, they were placed in a solution of 3% sodium hypochlorite for six hours. A #15, K-File was used to randomly choose teeth from 1 to 80 for measuring (Mani).
Results: Three apex locators failed to detect the apical foramen in the presence of 3% sodium hypochlorite, according to Newman-Keuls multiple posthoc procedures. Dentaport ZX was 90% accurate in finding the apical foramen, Apex NRG was 87.5% accurate, and Propex II was 81.25% accurate within 0.5 mm of the acceptable therapeutic range.
Conclusion: EALs may function on an electrical basis rather than the biological characteristics of the tissues involved, according to some research. In vitro models that have periodontium-like electrical resistance may thus provide useful information.
Keywords: Root canal, endodontics, apical foramen, sodium hypochloride, apex locator, periodontium