Influence of apical foramen cleaning in the repair of periapical lesions

Introduction: The present study sought to assess the effect of apical foramen cleaning in the repair of periapical lesions detected by radiography. Methods: The sample comprised 980 teeth collected from 25 February 1997 to 15 March 2005 which had been subjected to endodontic treatment and exhibited radiographically visible periapical lesions. The sample was then divided into two groups: Group I, 402 root canal treatments in which cleaning of the apical foramen had not been performed, and Group II, composed of the remaining 578 root canal treatments where the procedure had been performed. After one year, the teeth were clinically and radiographically evaluated. Results: In Group I, 360 canals (89.55%) had no evidence of periapical lesions, versus 521 (90.13%) in Group II. Partial presence of these lesions was observed in 23 canals (5.72%) in Group I versus 27 (4.67%) in Group II. No changes in images were observed in 19 (4.72%) canals in Group I and 30 in Group II. Pearson’s chi-square test showed no statistically significant difference between the Groups I and II (p = 0.732). Conclusions: These findings suggest that foramen cleaning is not a determinant of periapical lesion repair.