An electrochemical study of the sealing ability of different retrofilling materials

Eighty-eight extracted mandibular and maxillary cuspids were selected for this study. Eighty cuspids were used as experimental groups and eight were used as controls. Anatomical crowns were resected, root canals were prepared, and the apical 2 mm of the roots were removed. The experimental roots received apical cavity preparations and were randomly divided into four equal groups. The apical cavities were retrofilled with amalgam, heat-sealed gutta-percha, zinc polycarboxylate cement, or glass ionomer cement. Leakage was measured using an electrochemical technique. Statistical analysis of the results indicated that glass ionomer sealed significantly better than the other materials, followed by amalgam, heat-sealed gutta-percha, and zinc polycarboxylate cement, respectively.