Evaluation and comparison of cleaning efficacy of two irrigants as judged by microbial quantification – an invivo study

Context: The endodontic triad comprises of cleaning, shaping, disinfection and obturation. Success of root canal therapy is majorly achieved by proper cleaning and shaping. To effectively clean the root canal system, a disinfecting agent must penetrate the difficult areas and kill the microorganisms with minimal damage to the host tissues.

Aim: The purpose of this in vivo study was to evaluate the antimicrobial efficacy of two irrigating solutions QMix and BioPure MTAD.

Materials and Method: Twenty four single canalled teeth were randomly divided into two groups of twelve each. Root canals in both the groups were instrumented with WaveOne Rotary files and irrigated with sodium hypochlorite. In Group I final irrigation was done with BioPure MTAD and QMix in group II. Samples for culture were taken immediately after accessing the canal and following irrigation. The samples were collected in test tubes containing nutrient broth and cultured in tryptone soya agar at incubation temperature of 37°C for 24-48 hours. Pre and post bacterial colonies were counted with digital colony counter.

Results: The pre- and post-irrigation counts were used to obtain the percent reduction in microbial counts. The statistical significance of difference in the percent reduction between two groups was evaluated using Wilcoxon rank sum test. The test resulted into a P-value of 0.004 indicating significant difference in the reduction of microbial count in both groups.

Conclusion: This study concluded that QMix performed better than BioPure MTAD.