Evaluation of the Effect of Different Root Canal Preparation Techniques in Primary Teeth Using CBCT

The purpose of this in vitro study was to compare and evaluate the cleaning and shaping efficiency of the rotary Ni-Ti, sonic and conventional file systems for root canal preparation in primary teeth under CBCT.

Seventy five maxillary and mandibular first and second primary molars were divided into three groups of 25 teeth each, according to the canal preparation technique: Group I Rotary file system, Group II Sonic file system, Group III Conventional K files. Canals were scanned using an i-CAT CBCT scanner before and after preparation to evaluate their shaping efficiency. Root canal transportation and centering ratio were evaluated at coronal, middle and apical thirds. The cleaning efficiency was evaluated by the extent of India ink removal from the canal walls under stereomicroscope. The collected data was subjected to statistical analysis.

Nickel-Titanium (Ni-Ti) rotary system caused less canal transportation and had better centering ability. Sonic system showed better shaping at the apex, and wider at coronal end. Conventional K-files removed more dentin at coronal than in middle and apex and efficiently cleaned the root canals. There were no significant difference in cleaning and shaping efficiency between Rotary system, Sonic system & Conventional K file system.

Rotary instrumentations could be considered as an efficient alternative to conventional hand preparation as it respects the original canal anatomy with no aberrations or resulting failures.