Effects of Intracanal Medicaments on the Measurement Accuracy of Four Apex Locators: An In Vitro Study

Objective: This study aimed to examine the effect of various intracanal medicaments on the precision of four electronic apex locators (EALs). Materials and Methods: This study comprised 160 maxillary central incisors. After root canal preparation, a 25-K file was carefully introduced into the root canal until it was perceptible through the apex, and 0.5 mm was subtracted from this amount to determine the actual length. Samples were divided into four groups: calcium hydroxide, double antibiotic paste, triple antibiotic paste, and the control groups. Intracanal medications were removed with EDTA ten days later, and electronic measurements were performed. Chi-square (chi(2)) test was used to assess the precision of EALs within the margins of +/- 0.5 and +/- 1 mm (alpha=0.05). Results: The accuracies of the four EALs did not vary significantly for different intracanal drugs within the bounds of +/- 0.5 and +/- 1 mm (chi(2) tests, p>0.05). Conclusion: The EALs used in this study obtained reliable readings of working length in the context of varying intracanal medications.