Turmeric Gel as alternative Non-Vital Pulpotomy medicament in Primary teeth- A Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

<p><strong>Background and objective: </strong>Formocresol is a gold standard medicament in both vital and non-vital Pulpotomies due to its potent antibacterial potential but, it has a controversial nature due to its side effects. Therefore, the demand for natural alternatives of Formocresol as a pulp dressing material, with few or no side effects, became imperative. The purpose of the study was to introduce Turmeric gel as non-vital Pulpotomy medicament in primary teeth by evaluating its antibacterial effect against<em> Streptococcus mutans</em> and <em>Lactobacillus acidophilus</em>.</p>
 <p><strong>Method: </strong>It was a multi-arm parallel Randomized Controlled Trial in which sixty patients aged between 4 to 8 years, each containing at-least one non-vital primary molar, were selected and randomly divided into Group A (Formocresol) and Group B (Turmeric gel). Non-vital Pulpotomy was performed by removing the coronal necrotic pulp. Sterile paper points were dipped in the root canals and taken to the laboratory. Cotton pellets soaked in the respective medicaments were placed over the root canal orifices and filled temporarily. Patients were recalled after one week. Samples were again taken, and tooth restored. Comparison between bacterial count at baseline and after one week of treatment was made and expressed as Colony-Forming Units/ml (CFU/ml).</p>
 <p><strong>Results:</strong> There was a significant reduction in median <em>Streptococcus mutans</em> and <em>Lactobacillus acidophilus</em> bacterial count in each group after one week of treatment (p < 0.001). Formocresol showed higher average reduction than Turmeric gel. However, statistically, the difference was insignificant indicating that both the medicaments possessed comparable antibacterial effect.</p>
 <p><strong>Conclusion:</strong> Turmeric gel was found as effective alternative to Formocresol.</p>
 <p><strong>Randomized Controlled Trial registration number in ClinicalTrials.gov:</strong> NCT05801354</p>
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