EFFECT OF MOISTURE ON THE APICAL SEAL OF LATERALLY CONDENSED GUTTA-PERCHA

Eighty-five single-rooted human teeth were cleansed and shaped for obt uration with gutta-percha and Proco-Sol root canal cement. Two of the three experimental groups had their canals contaminated with either 0. 05 ml of NaOCl or saliva immediately prior to obturation. The remainin g group of 25 teeth had dry canals prior to obturation. All teeth were obturated by the lateral condensation technique, covered with two coa ts of nail polish, immersed in India ink, and subjected to a vacuum fo r 15 min. The teeth were then cleared to allow visual assessment of th e dye penetration through the apical seal. Positive and negative contr ols verified the experimental method. The recorded measurements were s tatistically analyzed and no significant differences were found among the groups.