Evaluation of sealing abilitiy of mineral trioxide aggregate mixed with propylene glycol as a root canal sealer: A in vitro study

Abstract

Background: Sealing ability is one of the most important features of endodontic sealers. The main
goal of the present study was to compare sealing ability of mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA)‑propylene
glycol (PG) with two commonly used resin‑based and MTA‑based sealers.
Materials and Methods: In This in vitro study Seventy extracted single‑root teeth were used.
Canal preparation was carried out using hand and RaCe rotary files. Ten teeth were used as
control. The root canals in positive and negative control groups were left empty. Remaining
60 teeth were randomly divided into following four groups (n = 15): In Group 1, the canals were
dried using paper cones and obturated using MTA‑PG sealer. In Group 2, saline was removed from
canal using a syring, but paper cones were not used. Obturation was done using MTA‑PG sealer.
In Groups 3 and 4, the canals were dried using paper cones and obturated with AH26 and MTA
Fillapex, respectively. Two‑chamber method was used to evaluate bacterial leakage using Enterococcus
faecalis (ATCC 29212). Turbidity of the lower chambers was checked every day during 90 days.
Chi‑square, Kaplan–Meier analysis, and logrank tests were used to compare groups regarding leaked
samples at the end of the study. The level of significance was set at 0.05.
Results: There was no significant difference among groups regarding rate of leakage throughout
the study. However, at the end of the study, the groups were statistically different regarding leaked
samples (P = 0.034). MTA Fillapex and MTA‑PG in dry canal showed the most and least leaked
samples at the end of the study, respectively (P < 0.05).
Conclusion: MTA mixed with PG has superior sealing ability than MTA Fillapex.
Key Words: Dental leakage, mineral trioxide aggregate, propylene glycol, sealing