Evaluation of mineral trioxide aggregate as root canal sealer: A clinical study

AIM: The aim of this study was to compare the clinical and radiological outcome of mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) or epoxy resin as a root canal sealer compared with zinc oxide eugenol sealer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 45 single rooted teeth with periapical index Score 2 or more were allotted to three groups with 15 teeth in each group. Root canal treatment was performed in two visits and obturated with Gutta-percha as obturating material and zinc oxide eugenol as sealer in Group 1, epoxy resin as sealer in Group 2 and MTA mixed with propylene glycol as sealer in Group 3. Visual analog scale, periapical index and VixWin digital Pro image analysis software were used for evaluation. The quantitative data was analyzed by t-test and analysis of variance. Ordinal data was analyzed by Wilcoxon's signed rank test, Mann-Whitney and Kruskall-Wallis test. RESULTS: Results suggested that there exists no statistically significant difference in clinical or radiological outcome of root canal therapy with three different types of sealers used in this study. CONCLUSIONS: MTA could be used as a root canal sealer with equal effectiveness compared with epoxy resin and zinc oxide eugenol sealers. Further long-term studies should be carried out to prove the effectiveness.