Cytotoxicity of Endodontic Irrigants on Human Periodontal Ligament Cells

INTRODUCTION: Root canal irrigation has an extremely important role in the success of endodontic treatment. During endodontic treatment, the irrigants will be in contact with pulpal and periapical tissues. The purpose of this study was to clarify the potential toxicological implications of NaOCl, EDTA, MTAD, CHX and QMix on periapical and periodontal tissues. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Cytotoxicity of solutions was evaluated on cultured human periodontal ligament (hPDL) that were carefully removed from the middle third of premolar roots. Cytotoxicity of the materials was assessed after 1, 5 and 15 min of exposure using the Mosmann’s Tetrazolium Toxicity (MTT) assay. Optical density of the solution was read at 540-690 nm wavelength. The intensity of color generated correlated with the percentage of viable cells. Data were statistically analyzed using repeated measures ANOVA followed by Bonferroni test. RESULTS: The mean percentage of viable cells in all experimental groups was significantly different from sterile saline groups at all time points (P<0.0001). The mean percentage of viable cells significantly decreased over time in MTAD and NaOCl groups. The lowest and highest cytotoxicity belonged to MTAD and EDTA groups, respectively at all the time points (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: MTAD had the lowest cytotoxicity compared to NaOCl, CHX, QMix and EDTA. These impacts have been time dependent. These irrigation fluids may cause unfavorable effects on vital tissues.