Comparative evaluation of antimicrobial efficacy of calcium hydroxide, triple antibiotic paste and bromelain against Enterococcus faecalis: An In Vitro study

CONTEXT: Considering the effectiveness and safety concerns of synthetic intracanal medicaments (ICM), alternative usage of herbal ingredients in the root canal treatment may prove to be beneficial. Hence, the naturally available potent proteolytic, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial pineapple extract Bromelain as an ICMs needs to be studied. AIM: The aim of this study is to evaluate and compare the antimicrobial efficacy of calcium hydroxide (CaOH) and triple antibiotic paste (TAP) with Bromelain against Enterococcus faecalis bacteria using the turbidity method. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty-four freshly extracted single-rooted teeth were collected and 6 mm sections were prepared. These samples were infected with E. faecalis bacteria (ATCC 29212), randomly divided into four groups. Negative control, CaOH paste, TAP, and Bromelain paste. After the removal of medicament, the optical density (OD) of the dentinal shavings was measured using a spectrophotometer. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: The Chi-square and Kruskal − Wallis ANOVA test were used. The confidence interval was set to 95% at 5% significance level. RESULTS: TAP showed less OD than CaOH(2) paste which is statistically significant. (P = 0.0022). The OD reading of Bromelain paste was less than CaOH(2) with P = 0.007. The OD of Bromelain and TAP were statistically insignificant (P = 0.095), indicating their comparable antibacterial efficacy. CONCLUSIONS: The antimicrobial efficiency of Bromelain was found to be more effective than Ca (OH) (2) paste and comparable to TAP against E. faecalis.