Title

Effect of ultrasonic versus laser-activated irrigation on smear layer removal - An in vitro analysis

Authors

Ojaswini Pawar¹, Ronak N. Patel², Priyatam Maruti Karade^3,*, Chirantan Chowdhury⁴, Rangoli Srivastava⁵ & Mohammed Mustafa⁶

Affiliation

¹Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, D.Y. Patil Dental School, Charholi Budruk, Lohegaon, India; ²Department of Conservative Dentistry & Endodontics, Faculty of Dental Science, Dharmsinh Desai University, Nadiad, India; ³Department of conservative dentistry and endodontics, Bharati Vidyapeeth (Deemed To Be University) Dental College and Hospital, Sangli, India; ⁴Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, Sardar Patel post Graduate Institute of Dental and Medical Sciences, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India; ⁵Department of Public health dentistry, Faculty of dental sciences,  SGT University, Haryana, India; ⁶Department of Conservative Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj 11942, Saudi Arabia; *Corresponding author

Email

Ojaswini Pawar - E-mail: ojaswinipawar96@gmail.com

Ronak N. Patel - E-mail: ronakpatel.fods@ddu.ac.in

Priyatam Maruti Karade - E-mail: priyatam.karade@bharatividyapeeth.edu

Chirantan Chowdhury - E-mail: chirantanchowdhury06@gmail.com

Rangoli Srivastava - E-mail: authrangoli@gmail.com

Mohammed Mustafa - E-mail: ma.mustafa@psau.edu.sa

Article Type

Research Article

Date

Received June 1, 2026; Revised June 30, 2026; Accepted June 30, 2026, Published June 30, 2026

Abstract

Elimination of the smear layer from root canal walls remains a clinical challenge, as residual debris can compromise sealer adaptation and endodontic treatment outcomes. Therefore, it is of interest to compare the efficacy of passive ultrasonic irrigation and erbium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Er:YAG) laser-activated irrigation in removing smear layer at different canal levels. Sixty extracted single-rooted human premolars were allocated to four groups: conventional syringe irrigation, passive ultrasonic irrigation and Er:YAG laser-activated irrigation at 1.0 W and 1.5 W using sodium hypochlorite and EDTA. Scanning electron microscopy evaluation demonstrated that both activation techniques significantly improved smear layer removal compared with conventional irrigation at all canal levels (p<0.001). Thus, Er:YAG laser-activated irrigation at 1.5 W showed superior smear layer removal in the apical third, suggesting its potential as an effective adjunct in contemporary endodontic practice.

Keywords

Smear layer, passive ultrasonic irrigation, laser activated irrigation, erbium laser, root canal treatment.

Citation

Pawar et al. Bioinformation 22(6): 3362-3368 (2026)

Edited by

Hiroj Bagde

ISSN

0973-2063

Publisher

Biomedical Informatics

License

This is an Open Access article which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. This is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.