DOI: 10.36347/sjams.2018.v06i11.069

Pages: 4546-4550

The study was conducted to compare the efficacy of three different endodontic irrigation systems in the removal of the smear layer at apical third of root canals. Sixty recently extracted, non-carious human intact single-rooted premolars were selected and divided into four groups (n=15) according to the root canal irrigation systems; syringe and needle irrigation as control (C), Endovac irrigation (EV), ultrasonic irrigation (US) and EndoVac (EV) irrigation system. All groups were prepared to #40 apical size and subjected to final irrigation by using four different irrigation/activation systems. After splitting the samples, one half of each root was selected for examination under a scanning electron microscope (SEM). The irrigation systems were compared using Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests, P values were computed and compared with statistical significance at the P=0.05 level. In the apical part of the canal none of the methods could completely remove the entire smear layer but the EndoVac system showed the significantly better removal of smear layer and debris than the other methods. Within the limitations of the present study, the EndoVac system cleaned the apical part of the canal more efficiently than sonic, ultrasonic and syringe and needle irrigation.