The aim of the study was to evaluate and compare the sealing quality of han
d- or vacuum-obturated root canals after hand instrumentation or noninstrum
entation cleansing. A total of 60 single-rooted teeth were divided into six
comparable groups. The root canals of three groups were instrumented with
the balanced-force technique and obturated with gutta-percha condensation.
The remaining teeth were cleansed and filled using noninstrumentation techn
ology and the same sealers as with hand instrumentation (AH Plus, Apexit, P
ulp canal sealer EWT). After aging the quality of coronal seal was assessed
with a dye penetration method after perfusion with the dye under vacuum. T
he results of this study indicated superior sealing of the machine-filled r
oots (noninstrumentation technology), compared with laterally condensed con
ventionally filled root canals.