simvastatin versus calcium hydroxide direct pulp capping of human primary molars: a randomized clinical trial

background and aims. the aim of present study was to investigate pulp-dentin complex reactions following direct pulp capping (dpc) with calcium hydroxide [ca(oh)2] and simvastatin as pulp-capping materials in the primary human molars. materials and methods. 120 primary molar teeth which had to be extracted for orthodontic reasons were randomly allocated into four groups. group ι as a control, underwent dpc with calcium hydroxide. the dental pulp in group іі, ііі and іv were directly capped with simvastatin-based materials at concentrations of 1, 5 and 10 µm, respectively. all of the teeth were restored with stainless steel crown. after a mean period of 7.41 months teeth were extracted and processed for histological examination and categorized in terms of hard tissue formation and pulp inflammation. results. teeth in group i had statistically favorable outcomes in hard tissue formation and pulp inflammation than did the groups іі, ііі and іv (p < 0.001). considering three different concentrations of simvastatin, the result showed a dose dependent trend. teeth in group іv showed significantly lower rates of hard tissue formation and higher rates of pulp inflammation and necrosis compared to those of groups іі (p < 0.05). conclusion. the findings of this study depicted that healing with no inflammation and hard tissue formation following statin treatment occurs with a lower rate than that with the calcium hydroxide.