Aim and objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate and compare radiographically, Pulpotec cement and Biodentine as direct pulp-capping agents in mature teeth, individually and in combination with photo-activated disinfection (PAD).
Material and methods: In the present study, 80 mature teeth with deep occlusal caries were selected for direct pulp-capping procedure and randomly assigned to one of the four groups [Pulpotec (I), Biodentine (II), Pulpotec + PAD (III), and Biodentine + PAD (IV)] allocating 20 teeth to each group. Direct pulp capping and cavity disinfection were performed based on the group allotted followed by permanent restoration with composite. The teeth were evaluated radiographically (densitometric analysis) at intervals of 3, 6, and 12 months. The radiographic gray values obtained at follow-up periods for each group were subjected to two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with repeated measures.
Results: There was a significant improvement (p <0.0001) in the scores of all the groups at follow-ups as compared to the baseline. There was a significant difference between group I/group II with groups III and IV (p = 0.000) with group IV scoring highest at all follow-ups. However, the difference between groups I/II and groups III/IV was nonsignificant.
Conclusion: Both, Biodentine and Pulpotec can be used for direct pulp capping of mature teeth. Furthermore, PAD prior to material application significantly improved the radiographical success of Biodentine and Pulpotec, with Biodentine showing better results than Pulpotec.
Clinical significance: Biodentine and Pulpotec demonstrated comparable success as a pulp-capping agent and PAD application exhibited a synergistic effect when used in conjunction with these materials.
Keywords: Biodentine; Direct pulp capping; Mature teeth Pulpotec..