Efficacy of curcumin-mediated photodynamic therapy for root canal therapy procedures: A systematic review

Background: This systematic review aimed to investigate the effectiveness of CUR-mediated PDT (Curcumin mediated PDT) as an adjunct to conventional chemo-mechanical debridement and/or standard PDT of the RC system with endodontic infections. Methods: The focused research question was: "Whether the application Curcumin mediated PDT as an adjunct is more effective than the traditional chemo-mechanical debridement and/or standard PDT of the RC system alone for improving antibacterial and/or mechanical features among subjects undergoing RCT?". An electronic literature search was performed in Scopus, PubMed, and Web of Science. In vitro reports utilizing Curcumin mediated PDT as an adjunct to conventional chemo-mechanical debridement considering permanent dentition assessing the antibacterial and/or mechanical effect were included. Results: Eighteen articles were included in the review, out of which 13 studies assessed the antibacterial activity, while 5 evaluated the mechanical properties. Most of the studies concluded that Curcumin mediated PDT had a significant antibacterial activity than the conventional chemo-mechanical debridement and/or standard PDT. Four of the five studies suggested that Curcumin mediated PDT had no impact on the push-out bond strength of root dentin. Furthermore, the significant heterogeneity in the data from the included studies did not permit the author to carry out a meta-analysis. Conclusion: There is potential for application of Curcumin mediated PDT as an adjunct to the conventional chemo-mechanical debridement and/or standard PDT in reducing the bacterial load, however, Curcumin mediated PDT has minimal effect on enhancing the pushout bond strength of fiber posts to radicular dentin. Moreover, clinical studies are required to provide a more conclusive opinion on the efficacy of Curcumin mediated PDT for RCT procedures.