Naghma Parveen, Naveed Abbas Anjum, Vikram Lal, Bilal Ahmed.
Effectiveness of 2% chlorhexidine gel in reducing intracanal bacterial count.
Pak Oral Dental J Jan ;34(4):726-9.

Root canal treatment is normally prescribed to treat an infection, and as with all surgical procedures an aseptic technique is essential throughout. Even after complying with the best of the treatment regimens a root canal therapy can fail due to the presence of certain resistant, residual organisms. This study is all about clinical efficacy of 2% chlorhexidine gel in reducing intracanal bacterial count during RCT instrumentation. A total of 138 patients participated in this study. The sample included 69 male and 69 female patients. The mean age of the sample was 28.3 (SD = 4.16). The mean baseline bacterial count was 4.51 x 106 as compared to post medication count after 15 days which was 2.88 x 106. Bacterial growth/positive culture was found in only 29.7% of patients. Furthermore, effectiveness of Ca (OH)2, 2% chlorhexidine gel as measured by 50% decrease in bacterial count was observed in 65.2% patients. In conclusion, the results of Ca (OH)2, 2% chlorhexidine gel in the present study was able to reduce bacterial count after 15 days. These results suggested that CHX gel might be more effective at curtailing bacteria, and thus be better suited as intracanal medication.

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