In vitro study investigating the mass of tooth structure removed following endodontic and restorative procedures

There is limited scientific evidence which quantifies the amount of tissue removed during endodontic and restorative procedures.

The purpose of this study was to measure and compare the mass of tissue structure removed from incisor and canine teeth following successive preparations.

Twenty-two intact, disease- and restoration-free teeth (n=11/group) were collected from consenting patients undergoing dental extractions at Eastman Dental Hospital. The teeth were stored in 4% formaldehyde saline and successively prepared for an access opening (AC), endodontic instrumentation (EI), porcelain laminate veneer (PC), metal-ceramic (MC) crown, and post-and-core (PC) preparations. The baseline mass for each tooth was measured and recorded, in grams, at baseline and after each preparation, on a digital analytical balance. A standard protocol was applied to ensure accurate mass measurements. Repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to make comparisons between the incisor and canine groups (alpha =.05) for actual mass of tooth in milligrams, percentage of tooth mass remaining compared to baseline, and percentage decrease in mass compared to the preceding procedure.

The estimated marginal percentage mass lost was significantly greater (P<.001) in the incisor group compared to the canine group, as an overall trend, with the incisors losing proportionally more mass for each procedure (P<.001).

Mean percentage of removed tooth tissue increased successively from EI, AC, PC, and PV preparation, with greatest change from the previous procedure occurring for MC crown preparation.