effect of nd:yag and diode lasers on apical seal of root canals filled with ah plus and mineral trioxide aggregate-based sealers

Objectives: laser irradiation, as an adjunct to root canal preparation, may increase the success rate of endodontic treatments. this study aimed to assess the effect of neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (nd:yag) and diode lasers on the apical seal of the root canals filled with ah plus® and mineral trioxide aggregate (mta)-based sealers. materials and methods: this in-vitro experimental study was conducted on 96 single-rooted, single-canal extracted human teeth with closed apices. the root canals were prepared by using protaper® rotary instruments and were randomly divided into six groups (n=16): 940-nm diode laser and ah plus® sealer (group 1), nd:yag laser and ah plus® sealer (group 2), ah plus® sealer (group 3), 940-nm diode laser and mta-based sealer (group 4), nd:yag laser and mta-based sealer (group 5), mta-based sealer (group 6), as well as positive and negative control groups. a bacterial leakage model was used for microleakage assessment. qualitative assessment was done by using a scanning electron microscope (sem). data were analyzed by two-way analysis of variance (anova) at the significance level of 0.05. results: there were statistically significant differences between the experimental and control groups (p=0.002). the laser-treated groups showed a lower apical microleakage compared to the non-laser-treated groups, although the difference was not statistically significant (p>0.05). no significant differences were noted between the two lasers in terms of the apical microleakage, irrespective of the type of sealer (p>0.05). conclusions: laser irradiation, as an adjunct to root canal preparation, has no significant effect on the level of apical microleakage.