Use of electromagnetic stimulation on an Enterococcus faecalis biofilm in root canal treated teeth in vitro
type: CreativeWork
description: Introduction: Nonsurgical root canal therapy procedures aim to reduce the total microbial load within an infected root canal system through chemomechanical debridement of the root canal system via instrumentation in conjunction with an antibacterial irrigating solution. The most commonly used irrigant is sodium hypochlorite, often at concentrations toxic to human cells. Electromagnetic wave irradiation is a novel method of disinfection that has been shown to be bactericidal against planktonic microorganisms in solution, but its efficacy against an established biofilm is unknown. Pilot studies have demonstrated a synergistic killing effect with sodium hypochlorite through a process termed electromagnetic stimulation (EMS). If confirmed, lower concentrations of the current gold standard of 6.0-percent sodium hypochlorite could be used to irrigate infected root canals during endodontic treatment, resulting in less toxicity to human cells. There are also regenerative implications as EMS could be used to disinfect the root canals of immature teeth using 1.5-percent sodium hypochlorite, as recommended by the American Association of Endodontists. Objectives: The purpose of this in-vitro study was to evaluate the anti-biofilm effect of EMS against an established biofilm of Enterococcus faecalis. Materials and Methods: Single rooted teeth were cut to a standardized length (12 mm) and instrumented with a 45.05 Wave One Gold reciprocating file. Specimens were sterilized and inoculated with E. faecalis, which grew for two weeks to form an established biofilm. There were five treatment groups: 1) 6.0-percent sodium hypochlorite; 2) 1.5-percent sodium hypochlorite; 3) 1.5-percent sodium hypochlorite with EMS; 4) 0.9-percent saline with EMS and 5) 0.9-percent saline. Samples were collected, plated, and incubated for two days. The number of CFUs/mL was determined and converted to log10. The effect of treatment group on bacterial counts was made using Wilcoxon Rank Sums Test. One sa…
abstract: Introduction: Nonsurgical root canal therapy procedures aim to reduce the total microbial load within an infected root canal system through chemomechanical debridement of the root canal system via instrumentation in conjunction with an antibacterial irrigating solution. The most commonly used irrigant is sodium hypochlorite, often at concentrations toxic to human cells. Electromagnetic wave irradiation is a novel method of disinfection that has been shown to be bactericidal against planktonic microorganisms in solution, but its efficacy against an established biofilm is unknown. Pilot studies have demonstrated a synergistic killing effect with sodium hypochlorite through a process termed electromagnetic stimulation (EMS). If confirmed, lower concentrations of the current gold standard of 6.0-percent sodium hypochlorite could be used to irrigate infected root canals during endodontic treatment, resulting in less toxicity to human cells. There are also regenerative implications as EMS could be used to disinfect the root canals of immature teeth using 1.5-percent sodium hypochlorite, as recommended by the American Association of Endodontists. Objectives: The purpose of this in-vitro study was to evaluate the anti-biofilm effect of EMS against an established biofilm of Enterococcus faecalis. Materials and Methods: Single rooted teeth were cut to a standardized length (12 mm) and instrumented with a 45.05 Wave One Gold reciprocating file. Specimens were sterilized and inoculated with E. faecalis, which grew for two weeks to form an established biofilm. There were five treatment groups: 1) 6.0-percent sodium hypochlorite; 2) 1.5-percent sodium hypochlorite; 3) 1.5-percent sodium hypochlorite with EMS; 4) 0.9-percent saline with EMS and 5) 0.9-percent saline. Samples were collected, plated, and incubated for two days. The number of CFUs/mL was determined and converted to log10. The effect of treatment group on bacterial counts was made using Wilcoxon Rank Sums Test. One sa…
author: Kindler, Justin K.
language: en_US
keywords: electromagnetic stimulation, enterococcus faecalis, biofilm, root canal, root canal therapy, Endodontics
date published: 2019
date modified: 2026-07-24T02:40:46Z
provider: IUPUI
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: IUPUI

PropertyValue
property ID: Handle
value: https://hdl.handle.net/1805/19654

PropertyValue
property ID: DOI
value: 10.7912/C2/1620