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Apical and Lateral Canal Sealer Extrusion in Postoperative Periapical Radiographs Shared on Instagram: A
Hazal Faiz Arslanparcasi1, Mehmet Ali Arslanparcasi2
1Endodontics, Harran University, Sanliurfa, TUR.
Aim:
The aim of this cross-sectional image analysis study was to determine the prevalence of apical sealer extrusion and lateral canal sealer extrusion in postoperative periapical radiographs publicly shared on Instagram and to evaluate the relationship between these two radiographic findings.
Methods:
Postoperative periapical radiographs publicly shared on Instagram between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2025, were evaluated in this study. Following a standardized search using the hashtags #endodontics, #rootcanal, #rootcanaltreatment, and #endodontist, 102 radiographs that met the inclusion criteria were included. Each image was independently assessed by two observers for the presence of apical sealer extrusion and lateral canal sealer extrusion. Interobserver agreement was determined using Cohen's kappa analysis, and the association between apical sealer extrusion and lateral canal sealer extrusion was analyzed using the chi-square test of independence. The level of statistical significance was set at (p < 0.05).
Results:
Interobserver agreement was (κ = 0.920) for apical sealer extrusion and (κ = 0.835) for lateral canal sealer extrusion, indicating excellent agreement for both variables. Apical sealer extrusion was detected in 56 cases (54.9%), whereas lateral canal sealer extrusion was identified in 17 cases (16.7%). Apical sealer extrusion was observed more frequently than lateral canal sealer extrusion. However, no statistically significant association was found between apical sealer extrusion and lateral canal sealer extrusion (χ² = 0.507, p = 0.477).
Conclusions:
In postoperative periapical radiographs shared on Instagram, apical sealer extrusion was observed at a higher prevalence than lateral canal sealer extrusion. However, no significant association was identified between these two radiographic findings. The findings should be interpreted only within the context of selected postoperative radiographs obtained from social media. Further studies incorporating clinical patient records, standardized imaging protocols, sealer type, obturation technique, and long-term follow-up data may contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the clinical significance of apical and lateral canal sealer extrusion.