Effect of Er:YAG Laser-Activated Irrigation with Side-Firing Spiral Endo Tip on Dentin Mineral Composition of Tooth Root Canals
Sharonit Sahar-Helft,
Adi Farber,
Nathanyel Sebbane,
Coral Helft,
Roni Dakar,
Vitaly Gutkin,
Ronit Vogt Sionov,
Doron Steinberg
Affiliations
Sharonit Sahar-Helft
Department of Endodontics, School of Graduate Dentistry, Rambam Health Care Campus, The Ruth and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 3200003, Israel
Adi Farber
Department of Endodontics, Faculty of Dental Medicine, The Hebrew University-Hadassah, Jerusalem 9112102, Israel
Nathanyel Sebbane
Department of Endodontics, Faculty of Dental Medicine, The Hebrew University-Hadassah, Jerusalem 9112102, Israel
Coral Helft
Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv 6997801, Israel
Roni Dakar
Department of Endodontics, School of Graduate Dentistry, Rambam Health Care Campus, The Ruth and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 3200003, Israel
Vitaly Gutkin
Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Hebrew University, Jerusalem 9112102, Israel
Ronit Vogt Sionov
Biofilm Research Laboratory, Institute of Biomedical and Oral Research (IBOR), Faculty of Dental Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9112102, Israel
Doron Steinberg
Biofilm Research Laboratory, Institute of Biomedical and Oral Research (IBOR), Faculty of Dental Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9112102, Israel
Background: Treating tooth root canal systems with Er:YAG laser together with irrigants has been shown to be effective in reducing biofilms formed by Enterococcus faecalis. This study investigated whether laser-activated irrigation (LAI) with side-firing Endo tip (LiteTouch™; Light Instruments, Yokneam, Israel) affects dentin mineral composition when used with common endodontic irrigants. Methods: Root canals of extracted human teeth were treated with Er:YAG laser using a side-firing Endo tip combined with 17% ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and/or 2.5% NaOCl in continuous or intermittent mode for 60 s. Dentin mineral composition (Ca, P, O) in coronal, middle, and apical regions of root canals was examined by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Results: The use of LAI with continuous EDTA resulted in the largest reduction in Ca and P levels. A final NaOCl rinse mitigated the EDTA-mediated mineral loss in all root canal regions and increased the O content. Likewise, the reduced Ca/O and Ca/P ratios caused by continuous EDTA irrigation were reversed when combined with a final NaOCl rinse. Conclusions: LAI with Er:YAG Endo tip using continuous EDTA irrigation followed by NaOCl caused minimal dentin mineral loss and can therefore be considered to be a safe treatment module for cleaning root canals.
