Decontamination of Gutta-percha Cones employed in Endodontics

The gutta-percha cones used in endodontic treatment are produced in aseptic conditions and their composition includes zinc oxide, which is responsible for antibacterial activity. However, there is the possibility of microbial contamination by manipulation, aerosol or during storage. Although several chemical agents have been tested for their decontamination, there is no consensus on the best disinfection protocol to be used. The aim of this study was to evaluate the decontamination of gutta-percha cones contaminated with the bacteria Enterococcus faecalis, by using chlorhexidine digluconate (CHX) and sodium hypochlorite (NaClO) at different concentrations for short exposure times. For this purpose, gutta-percha cones (size 40) were selected at random from a sealed box and immersed for 1 min in a microbial suspension. Then they were immersed in specific Petri dishes for different groups containing: CHX 2%, NaClO 1% or NaClO 2.5% for 30 s or 1 min, and subsequently placed in tubes containing BHI broth. After incubating the tubes for 48 h, it was observed that 1% and 2.5% NaClO and 2% CHX were effective for decontaminating the cones at those exposure time intervals. Microbial growth was detected in one of the replicates of the group with CHX applied for 30 s. To prevent the possibility of failures at this stage, the exposure time of gutta-percha cones to the decontaminating agent should not be reduced.