Antibacterial Activity of Rosmarinus officinalis, Zingiber officinale, Citrus aurantium bergamia, and Copaifera officinalis Alone and in Combination with Calcium Hydroxide against Enterococcus faecalis

This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of different concentrations of essential oils combined with calcium hydroxide against Enterococcus faecalis. Thirteen experimental groups were formed: NC (negative control); PC (positive control); GC (growth control); SC (sterilization control); RO (Rosmarinus officinalis); ROH (calcium hydroxide + RO); ZO (Zingiber officinale); ZOH (calcium hydroxide + ZO); AB (Citrus aurantium bergamia); ABH (calcium hydroxide + AB); CO (Copaifera officinalis); COH (calcium hydroxide + CO); DWH (calcium hydroxide and distilled water). After reconstitution of the E. faecalis strain, microdilution testing was performed to define the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC). The data were tabulated in an Excel spreadsheet, and the MIC and MBC were calculated in accordance with the Bacteriological Analytical Handbook. MICs in the range of 0 to 100 mg/ml were only observed in the ROH group. The RO, ROH, AB, ZO, and ZOH presented absolute data for MBC. Bacterial growth was detected in the DWH group at all concentrations tested. The combination of the essential oils tested here with calcium hydroxide appears promising as an intracanal medication in endodontic treatment because of its effectiveness against Enterococcus faecalis. Essential oils are important in endodontic therapy since calcium hydroxide, the gold standard intracanal medication, is not effective against E. faecalis.