Abstract:
Photoactivated disinfection with sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) has improved primary root
canal treatment outcomes. This in vitro study aims to assess and compare the disinfecting efficacy
of 2.5% sodium hypochlorite solution and 5.25% sodium hypochlorite gel, without laser activation
and accompanied by laser activation, on Enterococcus faecalis-contaminated primary teeth root canals.
After one month of incubating extracted teeth specimens with E. faecalis, 36 specimens were randomly
divided into two groups: Group A (conventional method without laser-activated irrigation) and
Group B (with laser-activated irrigation). Each group was further divided into three subgroups, with
six samples in each subgroup. Subgroup 1 received irrigation with normal saline, Subgroup 2 with
2.5% sodium hypochlorite solution, and Subgroup 3 with 5.25% sodium hypochlorite gel. Diode laser
activation at 810 nm was used in Group B. Bacterial colony counts were measured before and after
the intervention. Student’s t-test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with Tukey’s post hoc
test were used for statistical analysis. The significance level was set at p < 0.05. Microbial analysis
revealed no bacterial growth in samples irrigated with 5.25% sodium hypochlorite gel activated with
the laser. Activation with the laser significantly (p = 0.02) improved the disinfection ability of the
irrigant compared to the non-activation group. The disinfection ability of sodium hypochlorite gel
was better than that of saline (p = 0.02); however, it was comparable to that of sodium hypochlorite
solution (p = 0.67). Conclusion: Root canal irrigation with 5.25% sodium hypochlorite gel activated
with an 810 nm diode laser resulted in complete eradication of Enterococcus faecalis, indicating its
effectiveness as an endodontic disinfection treatment modality.
