Effect of dentin thickness on root surface temperature of teeth undergoing ultrasonic removal of posts

The purpose of this study was to measure root surface temperature changes on thin-rooted and thick-rooted teeth undergoing ultrasonic vibration of cemented posts, with and without irrigation. Twenty-four single canal teeth were decoronated, length standardized, instrumented, obturated, and cemented with prefabricated posts. The teeth were divided into thin-rooted or thick-rooted groups. Thermocouples were cemented to the external proximal root surfaces adjacent the post ends. The roots were then mounted in standardized plaster molds and placed in a temperature-controlled water bath. Posts were ultrasonically vibrated with and without irrigation, and external root temperatures were recorded from an initial 37 degrees C baseline for a period of 4 minutes. The data were analyzed with the Student t test at alpha = .05. No significant differences were found in temperature change between the thin-rooted and thick-rooted groups, with or without irrigation. Linear regression and correlation analysis revealed no relationship between dentin thickness and temperature change.