INFLUENCE OF THE OBTURATION TECHNIQUE ON THE QUALITY OF OBTURATIONS ASSESSED BY MICRO-CT: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

Abstract

This systematic review aimed to investigate the influence of the obturation technique on the quality of obturations assessed by computed microtomography (micro-CT). A bibliographic search was performed in six electronic databases (PubMed, Cochrane, Scopus, Web of Science, EMBASE and Open Gray). The search strategy combined the following terms: “Root canal filling”; “Root canal obturation”; “Obturation technique”; “Root canal filling technique”; “Filling quality”; “Gaps”; “Voids”; “Empty spaces”; “MicroCT”; “Micro-CT”; “Microcomputed tomography. Eligibility criteria based on the PICOS strategy were P - extracted human permanent teeth, I - root canal filling using different techniques. C - lateral condensation technique, O - obturation quality (presence of bubbles and gaps) and S - in vitro studies. The risk of bias (RoB) of the included studies was assessed using an adaptation based on previous systematic reviews. The initial search resulted in 491 studies. 195 studies were excluded because they were duplicates. Of 281 eligible studies, 15 met the inclusion criteria and were selected for full reading. Of these, all were included for analysis. Seven studies had a high risk of bias, seven a moderate, and one had a low risk of bias. None of the obturation techniques were free of bubbles or gaps. Eight studies reported more gaps and bubbles when using the lateral condensation technique when compared to other techniques. One study reported that the lateral condensation had fewer gaps and bubbles when compared to other techniques. Six studies showed no difference in presence among techniques. This systematic review showed that no obturation technique performed on extracted teeth and evaluated by micro-CT is free of bubbles or gaps. This systematic review was registered in the PROSPERO database (CRD42021235037).