Antimicrobial activity of root canal sealers

Abstract

All root canal sealers should have antimicrobial activity so that they could act against any remaining bacteria after root canal obturation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of five root canal sealers: AH26, a resin based paste; Apexit, calcium hydroxide based paste; Endomethasone and Tubliseal, zinc oxide eugenol based materials and Ketac Endo Aplicap, glass ionomer based sealer. Matherials And Methods: Antimicrobial activity was tested against S. mutans 70C and L.casei ATCC 27773 using ADT (agar diffusion inhibitory test) on TYC SB, blood and MRS agars. Freshly prepared paste or cement was placed in grooves of 4 mm in diameter in agar plates. Prepared agar plates were incubated at 37?C in GAS PAC system for 24hours. The antimicrobial effect was determined according to the diameter of growth inhibition zone around tested materials. Three measurements were done for each material and values were recorded in millimeters. Statistical analysis was done using Mann Whitney test. The results confirmed that epoxy resin and zinc oxide eugenol based sealers had the greatest antimicrobial effect. Calcium hydroxide and glass ionomer based sealers showed significantly lower antimicrobial activity compared to AH26, Endomethasone and Tubliseal. Conclusion: The greatest antimicrobial activity was found for epoxy resin based sealer (AH26) for both tested microorganisms.