Fracture strength of endodontically treated teeth reconstructed with woven polyethylene fiber posts and biological posts

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the fracture strength and mode of endodontically treated teeth with structurally weakened roots reconstructed with woven polyethylene fiber posts and biological posts. Methods: After removing the crowns, 60 endodontically treated maxillary canines were distributed into 4 groups: 1) conventional root canal preparation and reconstruction with polyethylene fiber posts; 2) conventional root canal preparation and reconstruction with biological posts; 3) moderately flared root canals and reconstruction with biological posts; 4) widely flared root canals and reconstruction with biological posts. The posts were cemented with resin cement Enforce (Dentsply Ind. e Com., Petrópolis, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil) and the core was constructed with Ti-Core (EssentialDental Systems, S. Hackensack, NJ, USA) resin composite. The specimens were tested under compression in a universal testing machine. Results: The following fracture strength values were obtained: Group 1 – 45.46kgf; Group 2 – 53.30kgf; Group 3 – 58.67kgf; Group 4 – 47.91kgf, with statistically significant differences between Groups 1 and 3 (p<0.05). The following fracture modes were observed: Group 1 – predominance of fracture of the coronal portion of the post; Groups 2 and 3 – various fracture patterns; Group 4 – all roots fractured. Conclusion: Both posts were shown to be promising (adequate fracture strength and favorable pattern of fracture). Biological posts appear to be capable of reinforcing the root to some extent; however, fracture occured in all roots with widely flared root canals