Symptoms Before Periapical Surgery Related to Histologic Diagnosis and Postoperative Healing at 12 Months for 178 Periapical Lesions

The Limitations of Periapical X-ray Assessment in Endodontic Diagnosis-A Systematic Review

Diagnosis is a key aspect in endodontic treatment, in a decade where invasive interventions are misapprehended as social tendency instead of medical necessity. All diagnostic facets should be considered before intending the operative phase. Intraoral endodontic radiology-based diagnosis has been shown to be limited. Periapical X-ray is the most used endodontic imaging, yet it does not provide high accuracy. Traditionally, dentists have been trained to diagnose a cyst by certain aspects (size, shape and appearance); hence, an assumption that teeth are affected by "periapical cyst" were subjected to unnecessary extraction or apicoectomy. The aim of this systematic review is to critically appraise the publications that relate the histological diagnosis of a periapical lesion (considered the gold standard) to intraoral X-ray investigation. Ovid Medline, PubMed, ScienceDirect, Mendeley and Scopus were searched for English-language studies comparing periapical diagnosis obtained by using two techniques (histopathology and X-ray). Sixteen articles were included for the final analysis (qualitative and quantitative evaluation) out of which only two supported the statement that periapical diagnosis can be coherently assessed through periapical imaging. Although there is not enough evidence to deliver a definitive conclusion, there are many publications that refute the diagnosis of a cyst via periapical X-ray.

Factors that influence the outcomes of surgical endodontic treatment

Surgical endodontic treatment encompasses a broad spectrum of procedures, amongst which root-end cavity preparation and filling, retrograde root canal treatment and through-and-through endodontic surgery, may be classified under the umbrella term 'Root-end surgery'. This narrative review considers the available data on periapical healing, soft tissue healing, tooth survival and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL), following root-end surgery and the factors that affect its outcomes. The pooled periapical healed rate for the studies published up to 2021 was 69% (95% CI: 65%, 73%) but increased to 76% (95% CI: 66%, 86%) when only data from the 2020's studies were analysed. The prognostic factors consistently reported for periapical healing have included: pre-operative periapical lesion with complete loss of buccal plate, quality of root-end preparation, remaining thickness of apical root dentine and restorative status. Soft tissue healing of the reflected flap was found to have a positive association with periapical healing. The survival rates following root-end surgery range from 48% to 93%, with failure of periapical healing associated with root and crown fracture, being the predominant reasons for tooth extraction. The factors influencing impact of root-end surgery on patients' quality of life could not be adequately evaluated due to design flaws in the available studies. In conclusion, if root canal treatment failure due to leakage through cracks, fractures or restoration margin are excluded, the remaining cases may represent localized residual infection and inflammation at the periapex that should be amenable to predictable management with the aid of modern root-end surgery.

Suspected Endodontic Failure in a Patient with Cleidocranial Dysplasia: A Case Report

A patient's medical history and related dental manifestations can significantly contribute to confounding signs and symptoms leading to a diagnostic challenge. An 18-year-old female patient presented with persistent radiographic radiolucency associated with the apex of a previously treated tooth (tooth 9); asymptomatic apical periodontitis and endodontic failure were suspected. This report presents how a patient's condition of cleidocranial dysplasia had a profound effect on her dental history, which included the presence of multiple supernumerary teeth. Extensive surgical intervention during the patient's childhood was required to remove the supernumerary teeth, which resulted in an endodontic misdiagnosis in her adult life. After clinical and radiographic examination, the patient was diagnosed with a periapical scar. Periapical fibrous scars have a prevalence of between 2.5% and 12% and are a rare healing process with fibrous tissue after surgical and nonsurgical interventions. This report describes the diagnosis and pathophysiology of fibrous scars, including their risk factors and long-term monitoring approaches.

Noninvasive Endodontic Periapical Biopsy of a Periapical Fibrous Scar: Case Report

Post-endodontic periapical fibrous scars (PFSc) comprise a type of radiolucent healing that is frequently misinterpreted as a pathological lesion. A combined clinical, radiological and histological correlation is essential for a reliable diagnosis. This report presents a case of a patient with a long-term persisting asymptomatic post-endodontic radiolucency that was misdiagnosed as endodontic failure and referred for endodontic retreatment and periapical surgery. In order to reach a definitive diagnosis, a core bone biopsy needle (CBBn) technique was performed of the area of the radiolucency. The material obtained was processed for histological analysis and the lesion was determined to be a PFSc. In conclusion, the use of a CBBn prior to any invasive treatment allowed the clinician to distinguish between PFSc and other persisting pathosis, such as periapical granuloma or cystic lesions.

Clinicopathological study of periapical scars

Background/purpose

Periapical scar (PS) is an alternative healing process with the formation of scar tissue after appropriate endodontic treatments/retreatments with or without periapical surgeries. This retrospective study evaluated the clinical, radiographic, and histopathological features of 7 PSs.

Materials and methods

The clinical, radiographic, and histopathological data of 7 PSs were collected and analyzed.

Results

The 7 PSs were taken from the maxilla (3 cases) and mandible (4 cases) of 3 men and 4 women. The most frequently involved teeth were maxillary or mandibular incisors (4 cases) and first or second molars (3 cases). Of 7 PS patients, 6 had none of symptoms, 5 had previous nonsurgical endodontic treatments/retreatments, and 2 had previous endodontic treatments/retreatments plus periapical surgery. Radiographically, all 7 PS cases presented as a persistent and well-defined periapical radiolucent lesion for a long period of time. Microscopically, all 7 surgical specimens of PS showed dense fibrous collagenous tissues with one having amalgam particles in the scar tissue.

Conclusion

PSs do have their common clinical and radiographic features. When the periapical radiolucent lesion is well-defined, persistent without a significant change of its size, and free from symptoms and signs after a long-term follow-up; the involved tooth has no evidence of root fracture and healthy periodontium except the periapical radiolucency; and the previous endodontic treatment/retreatment or periapical surgery is well performed with an adequate root canal or retrograde filling, then the PS may be a possible diagnosis and a close follow-up may be a more conservative treatment strategy for this condition.

Outcome of Endodontic Surgery: A Meta-analysis of the Literature-Part 3: Comparison of Endodontic Microsurgical Techniques with 2 Different Root-end Filling Materials

INTRODUCTION

The aim of the present study was to investigate the influence of root-end preparation and filling material on endodontic surgery outcome. A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to determine the outcome of resin-based endodontic surgery (RES, the use of high-magnification preparation of a shallow and concave root-end cavity and bonded resin-based root-end filling material) versus endodontic microsurgery (EMS, the use of high-magnification ultrasonic root-end preparation and root-end filling with SuperEBA [Keystone Industries, Gibbstown, NJ], IRM [Dentsply Sirona, York, PA], mineral trioxide aggregate [MTA], or other calcium silicate cements).

METHODS

An exhaustive literature search was conducted to identify prognostic studies on the outcome of root-end surgery. Human studies conducted from 1966 to the end of December 2016 in 5 different languages (ie, English, French, German, Italian, and Spanish) were searched in 4 electronic databases (ie, Medline, Embase, PubMed, and Cochrane Library). Relevant review articles on the subject were scrutinized for cross-references. In addition, 5 dental and medical journals (Journal of Endodontics; International Endodontic Journal; Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology, Oral Radiology, and Endodontics; Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery; and International Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery) were hand checked dating back to 1975. All abstracts were screened by 3 independent reviewers (H.B., M.K., and F.S.). Strict inclusion-exclusion criteria were defined to identify relevant articles. Raw data were extracted from the full-text review of these selected articles independently by each of the 3 reviewers. In case of disagreement, an agreement was reached by discussion, and qualifying articles were assigned to group RES. For EMS, the same search strategy was performed for the time frame October 2009 to December 2016, whereas up to October 2009 the data were obtained from a previous systematic review with identical criteria and search strategy. Weighted pooled success rates and a relative risk assessment between RES and EMS were calculated. To make a comparison between groups, a random effects model was used.

RESULTS

Sixty-eight articles were eligible for full-text review. Of these, per strict inclusion exclusion criteria, 14 studies qualified, 3 for RES (n = 862) and 11 for EMS (n = 915). Weighted pooled success rates for RES were 82.20% (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.7965-0.8476) and 94.42% for EMS (95% CI, 0.9295-0.9590). This difference was statistically significant (P < .0005).

CONCLUSIONS

The probability for success for EMS proved to be significantly greater than the probability for success for RES, providing best available evidence on the influence of cavity preparation with ultrasonic tips and/or SuperEBA (Keystone Industries, Gibbstown, NJ), IRM (Dentsply Sirona, York, PA), MTA, or silicate cements as root-end filling material instead of a shallow cavity preparation and placement of a resin-based material. Additional large-scale randomized clinical trials are needed to assess other predictors of outcome.

Metalloproteinases 2 and 9 Immunoexpression in Periapical Lesions from Primary Endodontic Infection: Possible Relationship with the Histopathological Diagnosis and the Presence of Pain

INTRODUCTION

The aim of this study was to evaluate the possible associations among the histopathological diagnosis, the inflammatory infiltrate profile, the presence of pain, and the immunoexpression of matrix metalloproteinases MMP-2 and MMP-9 in periapical lesions from primary endodontic infection.

METHODS

Fifty-one primary periapical lesions obtained from extracted teeth were selected for this study. Patients were previously evaluated for the presence of pain and sinus tract related to the tooth to be extracted. Tissues were processed for microscopic examination and MMP-2 and MMP-9 immunoexpression. Microscopically, samples were classified as periapical granulomas or periapical cysts and the inflammatory infiltrate as chronic or mixed. The percentage of immunopositive cells for MMP-2 and MMP-9 of each case was performed based on 10 consecutive microscopic fields. The Student t or chi-square tests were used in the statistical analysis.

RESULTS

Of the total, 28 cases were classified as periapical granulomas (54.90%) and 23 cases as periapical cysts (45.10%). Seventeen patients (33.33%) reported pain associated with the extracted tooth, with 12 cases of periapical granulomas (70.58%) and 5 cases of periapical cysts (29.42%). All cases showed immunopositivity for MMP-2 and MMP-9 in a high percentage of cells, mainly in the cytoplasm of the leukocytes. MMP-2 was expressed more in periapical granulomas than periapical cysts (P < .05) and in symptomatic cases (P < .05).

CONCLUSIONS

According to the results, we may conclude that MMP-2 and MMP-9 are highly expressed in periapical lesions from a primary endodontic infection. Moreover, we may suggest MMP-2 is expressed more in periapical granuloma and in cases associated with pain.

Materials and prognostic factors of bone regeneration in periapical surgery: a systematic review

Objectives: Analyse the effectiveness of different materials and techniques used in guided tissue regeneration (GTR) applied in periapical surgery, comparing the success rate obtained in 4-wall defects and in through-and-through bone lesions as well as to establish prognostic factors. Material and Methods: A Cochrane, PubMed-MEDLINE and Scopus database search (October 2012 to March 2013) was conducted with the search terms “periapical surgery”, “surgical endodontic treatment”, “guided tissue regeneration”, “bone regeneration”, “bone grafts”, “barrier membranes” and “periapical lesions” individually and next, using the Boolean operator “AND”. The inclusion criteria were the use of GTR (bone graft and/or membrane barrier), clinical studies including at least 10 patients, 10 years aged articles published in English or French. The exclusion criteria were case reports and nonhuman studies. Results: 34 publications were selected from a total of 483. 9 of the 34 were excluded. Finally, the systematic review included 25 articles: 2 metaanalysis, 8 reviews, 13 prospective studies and 2 retrospective studies. They were stratified according to their level of scientific evidence using the SORT criteria. The 4-wall periapical and through-and-through lesions improve more their prognosis by combining bone grafts and barrier membranes than using these materials exclusively, respect to the control groups. The results show lower failure rates in 4-wall lesions than in through-and-through lesions using GTR. Conclusions: The combined GTR technique (filling material and membranes) obtains a greater success rate both in 4-wall lesions and in through-and-through lesions, respect to the control groups. The use of regeneration materials seems to be more necessary in through-and-through lesions,> 5mm lesions, lower teeth and apicomarginal lesions as they have the worst healing prognosis. In function of the articles scientific quality, a type B recommendation is given in favour to the use of GTR in association of periapical surgery in case of 4-wall and through-and-through lesions.

Key words:Periapical surgery, surgical endodontic treatment, guided tissue regeneration, bone regeneration, bone grafts, barrier membranes.