Root canal morphology of South Asian Indian mandibular first, second, and third molar: A dye penetration and clearing study

CONTEXT: Studying in detail the root canal morphology specific to the Indian mandibular molars will help discern whether the root canal anatomy patterns resemble those reported internationally or are different from it. AIM: The aim is to study the root canal anatomy of Indian permanent mandibular first, second, and third molar teeth using a tooth clearing technique. METHODS: The root canals of a total of 300 extracted Indian mandibular molars consisting of 100 first, second, and third molars each were accessed and injected with India ink, after which they were subjected to the clearing technique. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics for the computation of percentages using SPSS version 21. RESULTS: Of the hundred first molars, 90% of teeth were two rooted with three canals, 79% had two apical foramina. 70% mesial roots of the three-rooted type showed Type I, whereas 100% distal roots and distolingual roots showed Type I Vertucci’s anatomy. About 70% mesial roots of two roots showed Type II and 90% distal canals showed Type I configuration. Among the second molars, five (5%) were single-rooted, ninety-one (91%) teeth were two rooted and four (4%) had three roots. Among the mandibular third molars, fifteen (15%) teeth had one root, sixty-three (63%) teeth had two roots, eighteen (18%) teeth had three roots, and four (4%) teeth had four roots. CONCLUSIONS: The root canal anatomic features of mandibular molars showed differences in the frequency of particular anatomic types as compared to mandibular molars from other racial backgrounds. Further comparative studies on inter-racial anatomic characteristics from various geographic locations would be beneficial.