Innovative Damage Assessment of Endodontic Instruments Based on Digital Image Stacking.

Area of Science:

• Dental instrument analysis
• Medical imaging technology
• Endodontic material science

Background:

• Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is the gold standard for dental instrument damage assessment.
• SEM's clinical application is limited by accessibility and complex sample preparation.
• A need exists for a more practical alternative for routine clinical use.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce a novel digital photography and image processing system for endodontic instrument damage assessment.
• To provide a user-friendly, portable, and clinically applicable alternative to SEM.
• To evaluate the system's effectiveness in detecting early instrument damage.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing high-resolution digital photography.
• Implementing advanced image processing techniques, including image stacking.
• Developing a user-friendly interface for clinical application.

Main Results:

• The proposed system achieves image quality comparable to SEM.
• The system accurately detects early signs of instrument damage.
• The digital system demonstrates high suitability for daily clinical practice.

Conclusions:

• Digital image stacking offers a practical, efficient, and objective method for assessing endodontic instrument morphology.
• The system enhances the safety and quality of endodontic procedures by detecting early damage in instruments like reusable NiTi files.
• This cost-effective and user-friendly system provides a confident alternative to traditional methods for research and clinical settings.