A practitioner's guide to gutta-percha removal during endodontic retreatment

Endodontic retreatment can be a challenging task that can result in many complications if not approached cautiously. Many of these difficulties revolve around regaining access to the pulp chamber through extensive coronal restorations and removing residual root filling material, the commonest being gutta-percha (GP), from within obturated canals. This can often be an untidy, time consuming process that places teeth at a greater risk of iatrogenic injury and inhibits the operator achieving the necessary chemical disinfection required to eliminate the persistent apical disease. Therefore the following article aims to aid practitioners, particularly those who are unfamiliar, with accessing and removing GP from endodontically treated teeth. The outlined systematic approach is accessible in general practice, where the vast majority of endodontic treatment is conducted, requires basic equipment and with the correct experience can be applied to both straight and curved canals. By overcoming this initial stage of retreatment, subsequent chemical disinfection, which is critical to success, can be carried out to a higher standard reducing risks of re-infection.