Acoustic streaming during root canal irrigation
ORAL
Abstract
Ultrasonic irrigation during root canal treatment provides a way to enhance biofilm disruption. The challenge is to improve the fluid flow so that the irrigant reaches confined areas that are inaccessible to hand instrumentation such as the root canal and the dentinal tubules. The aim of this study is to experimentally investigate the acoustic streaming phenomena generated during ultrasonic irrigation.
An ultrasonic instrument with an endodontic file was used as the ultrasound source. The flow field in an unconfined space was investigated first by means of 4D-Particle Tracking Velocimetry (PTV). To study the effect of confinement, root canal phantoms and dentinal tubule arrays were fabricated using 3D printing and soft lithography. The flow field therein was determined by means of Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV).
The ultrasonic instrument generates two turbulent jets. When the flow is confined, these jets impact on the walls of the root canal leading to high velocities that facilitates irrigant penetration inside the dentinal tubules. The acoustic flow field is highly dependent on the power of the instrument (amplitude of oscillation of the file) but less so on the insertion depth of the file inside the root canal. The oscillatory character of the flow can lead to instantaneous values that are much higher than the time-averaged ones highlighting the potential of ultrasonic irrigation for optimal biofilm disruption.
An ultrasonic instrument with an endodontic file was used as the ultrasound source. The flow field in an unconfined space was investigated first by means of 4D-Particle Tracking Velocimetry (PTV). To study the effect of confinement, root canal phantoms and dentinal tubule arrays were fabricated using 3D printing and soft lithography. The flow field therein was determined by means of Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV).
The ultrasonic instrument generates two turbulent jets. When the flow is confined, these jets impact on the walls of the root canal leading to high velocities that facilitates irrigant penetration inside the dentinal tubules. The acoustic flow field is highly dependent on the power of the instrument (amplitude of oscillation of the file) but less so on the insertion depth of the file inside the root canal. The oscillatory character of the flow can lead to instantaneous values that are much higher than the time-averaged ones highlighting the potential of ultrasonic irrigation for optimal biofilm disruption.
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Presenters
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Anastasios Koulogiannis
University College London
Authors
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Anastasios Koulogiannis
University College London
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Panagiota Angeli
University College London, ThAMeS Multiphase, Department of Chemical Engineering, University College London, London WC1E 7JE, UK
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Stavroula Balabani
1. Wellcome/EPSRC Centre for Interventional and Surgical Sciences, University College London, UK; 2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University College London, UK, University College London