Efficiency evaluation of different activation methods on dentinal tubule penetration by a bioactive glass-based sealer using confocal laser scanning microscopy: An in vitro study

Abstract

Dentinal tubule penetration of bioactive glass-based sealers is influenced by the activation technique used during obturation. Therefore, it is of interest to compare the ultrasonic, sonic, lentulospiral and manual activation methods for dentinal tubule penetration of a bioactive glass-based sealer using confocal laser scanning microscopy. Sixty extracted mandibular premolars were prepared, obturated after sealer activation (n=15/group) and evaluated at coronal, middle and apical thirds using CLSM. Ultrasonic activation produced the greatest penetration at all root levels (322.58±4.34, 295.74±4.37 and 197.42±4.22 μm), followed by sonic (291.02 μm ,250.55 μm and 179.69 μm), lentulospiral (265.75 μm, 213.77 μm and 145.21 μm) and manual (155.47 μm, 114.03 μm and 95.70 μm) activation, with significant intergroup differences (P<0.001). Thus, data shows that ultrasonic activation significantly enhances dentinal tubule penetration of bioactive glass-based sealer and may improve obturation quality compared with conventional techniques.