Date of Award
Spring 2018
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Department
Dentistry
First Advisor
Berzins, David
Second Advisor
Hashimoto, Lance
Third Advisor
Ibrahim, Mohamed
Abstract
Introduction: Manufacturers claim that modern NiTi files with proprietary heat treatment transform at higher temperatures, thus staying more martensite and being more resistant to cyclic fatigue and more flexible. There are some studies comparing the effect of body temperature and room temperature on cyclic fatigue of these newer NiTi files. However, there is not yet a study published for evaluating the relationship between bending properties of NiTi instruments and temperature following the ISO 3630-1 guideline. The objective of this study was to evaluate how temperature affects the bending properties of six different brands of NiTi rotary instruments with different transformation temperature ranges. Methods: Six commercially available NiTi files were selected for this experiment. The tested files included K3 40/.04 (Sybron Endo, Orange, CA), ProFile Series 29 Green Size 6 (Dentsply Tulsa Dental Specialties), K3XF 40/.04 (Sybron Endo, Orange, CA), Vortex Blue 40/.04 (Dentsply Tulsa Dental Specialties), ProFile Vortex 40/.04 (Dentsply Tulsa Dental Specialties), and HyFlex CM™ 40/.04 (Coltène/Whaledent Inc., Cuyahoga Falls, OH). The Austenite finish temperatures of the files were 9.6 ± 0.5, 17.6 ± 0.6, 24.9 ± 1.1, 35.4 ± 1.2, 45.7 ± 0.9, and 60.3 ± 3.1, respectively. The bending properties of the files were measured using a torsiometer (Sa bri Dental Enterprises, Inc. Downers Grove IL) following ISO 3630-1 guidelines. Twelve of each file type were grouped into 3 groups based on temperatures. Each temperature group had a total of 72 files. Group 1 measured the bending moment (g.cm) at 9±2°C, group 2 at 23±2°C, and group 3 at 35±2°C. The data was statistically analyzed by ANOVA and post hoc HSD (P<0.05) Results: For all tested files, the bending moment of the files increased as the temperature rose from 9to 23 to 35°C. At all temperatures, HyFlex CM was significantly more flexible than other files. ProFile Vortex, K3XF, and Vortex Blue showed similar flexibility with each other. They were significantly more flexible than ProFile Series 29, which was significantly more flexible than K3. Conclusion: Testing temperature and brand of the files were significant independent variables affecting the flexibility of the files.