Bovine pulp tissue dissolution ability of HealOzone, Sterilox and NaOCl

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the bovine pulp tissue dissolution ability of HealOzone and Sterilox, and 0.5% Sodium Hypochlorite, used solely or in associations. Methods: Thirty bovine pulp fragments were weighed, divided into 6 groups of 5 fragments each and placed individually in a transparent and closed test tube containing 5 mL of each tested substance until total dissolution. The groups were as follows: (G1- negative control) Saline; (G2) Sterilox; (G3 – positive control) 0.5% (NaOCl); (G4) HealOzone + Saline (G5) HealOzone + 0.5% NaOCl; (G6) HealOzone + Sterilox. The pulp fragments were completely immersed in the solutions. HealOzone was activated for 120 seconds with #6 cup covering the test tube opening resting in a fixed platform. All other groups remained in resting state in the same fixed platform. Visual observation was performed with the help of a loop at 2X magnification, and time was recorded (min) until 2 hours of observation, and every additional hour until 10 hours, by 2 observers blinded as to the experimental groups. Dissolution speed was calculated by dividing pulp weight by dissolution time (g/min). Results: Only G3 (NaOCl) and G5 (NaOCl + HealOzone) were able to dissolve pulp tissue. The mean dissolution speed for G3 was 3.96 g/min (S.D. 0.32) and for G5 was 7.75 g/min (S.D. 2.00). Student T-Test showed that G5 dissolved bovine pulp tissue faster than G3 (p=0.01). (Figure 1: TD= G3; TDHO= G5) Conclusion: Only Sodium Hypochlorite was able to dissolve pulp tissue. HealOzone contributed to speed up the pulp dissolution process. It could be speculated that dissolution properties of sodium hypochlorite could be enhanced by HealOzone, allowing clinical use of more diluted concentrations of sodium hypochlorite, minimizing side effects such as tissue irritation and dentine loss of resistance.