Official websites use. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Correspondence: matej. The subsequent root canal treatment is not able to remove all the pathogens, and a small number of viable bacteria remain in the dentine tubules, which must be sealed by endodontic sealers. These sealers should have at least a bacteriostatic effect to prevent the remaining bacteria from reproducing. The aim of this study is to compare the short-term antibacterial activity of three endodontic sealers based on poly-epoxy resin, zinc oxide-eugenol and calcium silicate with a calcium hydroxide-based sealer.
Calcium hydroxide is used as temporary intracanal medicament and, thus, should show significant antibacterial activity. After the sealer placement and a 24 h incubation period, the root canal walls were scraped, and the suspension of dentine fillings was used for a semi-quantitative evaluation of microbial growth. Keywords: antibacterial, antimicrobial, endodontic, sealer, poly-epoxy resin, zinc oxide-eugenol, calcium silicate. Microorganisms and the products of their metabolism play a significant role in the development of inflammatory diseases of the dental pulp and periapical periodontium [ 1 ], and they are closely related with the failure of endodontic treatment [ 2 , 3 ] as well.
The spectrum of microorganisms is diverse, and it varies in individual cases [ 4 ]. A different spectrum of microorganisms is present in cases of dental pulp inflammation and in cases of periapical periodontium inflammation, as well as in cases of primary and secondary root canal infection [ 5 ].
What all these inflammatory processes have in common is that they are mainly caused by anaerobic microorganisms [ 4 , 5 ]. The treatment of these inflammatory diseases relies on the mechanical and chemical removal of the microbes from the root canal system [ 6 ]. Although the mechanical enlargement of the root canal removes a significant fraction of the microorganisms, it does not ensure the sterility of the root canal system.
Therefore, it is recommended to use irrigants with antimicrobial properties as well. The most commonly used irrigant is sodium hypochlorite NaOCl [ 7 ], which, apart from the antimicrobial action, dissolves vital and necrotic pulp tissue, lubricates the root canal walls and helps to remove the debris from the root canal system [ 8 ]. To potentiate the abilities of the NaOCl and to aid the dispersal of the irrigant into the root canal system, where in many cases there are lateral root canals that are inaccessible to mechanical instrumentation and contain residual microbial infection, activation of the irrigant is advised [ 9 ].
