Scanning electron microscopic evaluation of marginal adaptation of AH-plus, GuttaFlow, and RealSeal at apical one-third of root canals – Part I: Dentin-sealer interface

Background Complete seal at dentin-sealer-core interface of the root canal is required to maintain long-term periapical health. Aim The aim of this in vitro scanning electron microscopic (SEM) study was to determine which of the commonly used root canal sealer among AH-Plus, GuttaFlow, and RealSeal provides a superior marginal adaptation with the dentin in the apical third region of root canals. Materials and Methods Selected 30 human freshly extracted maxillary central incisors were biomechanically prepared, then divided equally into three groups and obturated with AH-Plus, GuttaFlow, and RealSeal using single-cone obturation technique. After sectioning longitudinally, apical third of the roots was observed under SEM; dentin-sealer-core interface was focused. Marginal adaptation and interfacial gaps at dentin-sealer interface of all the samples were evaluated and analyzed statistically in this part of the article. Statistical Analysis Used Analysis of variance and post hoc Tukey's test. Results GuttaFlow exhibited least average marginal gap of 2.38 ± 1.43 μm, followed by AH-Plus (4.11 ± 2.85 μm) and RealSeal (4.65 ± 3.91 μm) with no significant difference (P > 0.05) among the groups. Conclusions As the dentin-sealer interfacial gap is seen to be minimum in GuttaFlow, it is better adapted to dentin in the apical third of root canals compared to AH-Plus and RealSeal.