A preliminary analysis in the preparation and obturation of oval canals

Objective: 1) to observe the appearance of uninstrumented recesses in oval canals after instrumentation using circumferential filing. 2) To determine the quality of obturation both with cold lateral compaction and thermo plasticized gutta-percha technique in these recesses Study design: Twenty non-carious, freshly extracted human mandibular incisors with single canals were divided into group I (n=10) and group II (n=10) according to the two different obturation methods. The sectioned roots were prepared with flexofiles (Dentsply, Maillefer) ranging from #15 to #40 by using circumferential filing. The obturated specimens were horizontally sectioned at 5 mm from the apex. Each section was observed under the stereomicroscope at x40 magnification. The quality of obturation in the recesses was evaluated by using 3-point scoring system; the results were subjected to statistical analysis. Results and Conclusion: The results showed that, uninstrumented recesses might be left in many oval canals, even after circumferential filing with smaller size files. In addition, the thermoplasticized obturation technique was better in filling the recesses as compared to lateral compaction but the results were statistically insignificant