Efficacy of a Novel Microelectronic Device Against an Endodontic Biofilm in a Tooth Model

Introduction: This study was a follow-up on a previous experiment which showed a statistically significant reduction in bacterial viability when using electrochemical disinfection on a single-species bacterial biofilm cultured in a 96-well plate. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of electrochemical disinfection when using a tooth model cultured with a mixed-species bacterial biofilm. Methods: A total of 60 single-canal permanent teeth were cut to 15mm in length and cultured with a mixed-species biofilm containing Enterococcus faecalis, Fusobacterium nucleatum, and Porphyromonas gingivalis. They were then divided into five groups. Group 1 tooth samples were irrigated with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS), group 2 tooth samples were irrigated with PBS in combination with electrochemical disinfection (EC), group 3 tooth samples were irrigated with 1.5% NaOCl, group 4 tooth samples were irrigated with 1.5% NaOCl in combination with EC, and group 5 tooth samples were irrigated with 6% NaOCl. Results: There was a statistically significant 80.7% reduction in bacterial viability in group 2 compared to group 1. There were no statistically significant differences with respect to bacterial viability between groups 2 - 5. Conclusions: EC was found to be effective in reducing bacterial viability in a tooth model when used with PBS; however, no statistically significant bacterial viability reduction was identified when EC was combined with NaOCl compared with EC alone or NaOCL alone.