Efficacy of final irrigation--a scanning electron microscopic evaluation.

The purpose of this in vitro study was to determine the degree of removal of pulpal remnants and smear layer from root canals after final irrigation with three different solutions. During instrumentation the step-back preparation and 1% NaOCl were used. The final 4-min, 30-ml irrigation varied as follows: group I, 10 ml of 1% NaOCl + 10 ml of 10% citric acid + 10 ml of distilled water; group II, 15 ml of 0.5% NaOCl + 15 ml of EDTA-T; and group III, 10 ml of 5% NaOCl + 10 ml of 3% H2O2 + 10 ml of 5% NaOCl. Scanning electron microscopic photomicrographs were evaluated for the mean number of visible open dentinal tubules by three observers. The largest number of visible tubules in the three groups was in the cervical third, followed by the middle and apical thirds. There was no statistically significant difference between groups I and II when third was compared with third; however, groups I and II had significantly more visible dentinal tubules than group III.