Bactericide Effect of Silver Nanoparticles as a Final Irrigation Agent in Endodontics onEnterococcus faecalis: AnEx VivoStudy

Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine the bactericidal effect of silver nanoparticles as a final irrigation agent in endodontics. This study included 120 uniradicular extracted dental organs inoculated withEnterococcus faecalis(E. faecalis) and organized into 4 groups: (A) 30 teeth irrigated with a dispersion of silver nanoparticles (537 μg/mL); (B) 30 teeth irrigated with a sodium hypochlorite solution (2.25%); (C) 30 teeth irrigated with a dispersion of silver nanoparticles (537 μg/mL) + EDTA (17%); and (D) 30 teeth with a saline solution. After the irrigation protocol, the samples were analyzed through a spectrophotometer to measure the bactericidal effect and scanning electron microscope and atomic force microscope in order to observe the presence of dental smear layer. The results showed that nanoparticles of 10 nm and the sodium hypochlorite at 2.25% were effective for eliminatingE. faecalis, with no significant difference between them.