Journal of AdvancedMedical and Dental Sciences Research

Background: Primary endodontic infections are caused by necrotic pulp tissue colonized by microorganisms. The ultimate goal of endodontic treatment is to control microbial factor in complex root canal anatomy, especially in the apical third. The present study was conducted to compare conventional needle irrigation, sonic, ultrasonic irrigation in efficacy of intracanal smear layer removal using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Materials & Methods: 30 non- carious single rooted premolarswere divided into 3 groups of 10 each. Group I were subjected to syringe and needle irrigation, group II with sonic irrigation and group III with passive ultrasonic irrigation (PUI), having standard irrigation protocol.After splitting the samples, one half of each root was selected for examination under scanning electron microscope (SEM). Results: In the coronal part there was no difference among the groups. In the mid-root section, the results of the PUI were better than syringe and needle and sonic activation groups, but the difference was not significant (P> 0.05).In the apical part, PUI have shown the best results. Conclusion: Passive ultrasonic irrigation was superior in cleaning canal system and removing smear layer.