Analysis of forces developed during mechanical preparation of extracted teeth using Profile NiTi rotary instruments

The aim of this study was to analyse the vertical forces and torque developed in the root canal system of extracted teeth during mechanical preparation using ProFile NiTi instruments.

Instrument wear and fracture is in great part due to the repeated application of forces and torque during the course of root-canal preparation but research into the direct relationship has been hampered by the lack of adequate measuring devices. Measurements of these forces and torque were made with a new force analyser device, the Endographe, that was equipped with a holder to record and generate graphs of the vertical forces and torque exerted during the preparations. These preparations was performed by endodontists or students either with a series of instruments of increasing size or with the crown-down pressureless technique.

The mean values for the endodontists of the generated vertical forces and torque varied, respectively, from 4 to 6N and from 7.105 to 12.105 Nm for the step-back technique and from 2.9 to 4.2 N and from 18.105 to 20.105 Nm for the crown-down technique. This suggested that the crown-down technique generated lower stresses (lower torque and lower vertical forces), although these findings also depend on the shape of individual canals. The students initially showed wide variations in generated forces, with significantly lower vertical force the torque values. By the end of the experimental sessions their values were similar to those of the endodontists, which indicated improvement in the efficiency of manipulation.

Further work is needed to investigate the relationship between the force and the torque data from this study and the incidence of instrument fracture with the two techniques, as the clinical implications are considerable. It must be noted, however, that the Endographe is unable to take into account the cutting efficiency of the instruments. The use of graphs provides a new approach to the analysis of mechanical preparation.