Root Canal Transportation and Centering Ability of Nickel-Titanium Rotary Instruments in Mandibular Premolars Assessed Using Cone-Beam Computed Tomography

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to evaluate, using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT), transportation and centralization of different nickel-titanium (NiTi) rotary instruments. METHODS: One hundred and twenty eight mandibular premolars were selected and instrumented using the following brands of NiTi files: WaveOne, WaveOne Gold, Reciproc, ProTaper Next, ProTaper Gold, Mtwo, BioRaCe and RaCe. CBCT imaging was performed before and after root canal preparation to obtain measurements of mesial and distal dentin walls and calculations of root canal transportation and centralization. A normal distribution of data was confirmed by the Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Levene tests, and results were assessed using the Kruskal-Wallis test. Statistical significance was set at 5%. RESULTS: ProTaper Gold produced the lowest canal transportation values, and RaCe, the highest. ProTaper Gold files also showed the highest values for centering ability, whereas BioRaCe showed the lowest. No significant differences were found across the different instruments in terms of canal transportation and centering ability (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Based on the methodology employed, all instruments used for root canal preparation of mandibular premolars performed similarly with regard to canal transportation and centering ability.