Comparison of antimicrobial activity of three root canal sealers

Abstract

Background Endodontic sealers with antimicrobial properties can be advantageous as they would cope better with persisting residual infection and bacteria reentering from the oral cavity. Hence we compare the antimicrobial activity of three endodontic sealers AH Plus, Apexit plus and MTA Fillapex on Enterococcus Faecalis, Staphylococcus Aureus and Candida Albicans. Material and Method : Antimicrobial activity of the materials was evaluated by the method of agar diffusion. A base layer of 10 ml of Mueller Hinton agar was poured in Petri plates (90 x 15 mm). Three wells of 6 mm of diameter (one for each material) were obtained by removing a standardized portion of the agar in equidistant points with the aid of sterilized plastic straw. The wells were immediately filled with the sealers to be evaluated. The endodontic sealers AH Plus, Apexit Plus and MTA Fillapex were prepared according to the manufacturer’s instruction. Inhibition halos formed around the wells were measured with the aid of a millimetric rule with 0.5 mm of accuracy. All the experiments were repeated three times in different moments Results :Antimicrobial action of AH Plus was superior to that of Apexit Plus and MTA Fillapex against all the tested microorganisms p < 0.05).