Shaping ability of WaveOne Gold reciprocating file with and without glidepath in artificial S-shaped canals

Aim: Most authors have recognized that coronal pre-flaring has several advantages and it provides accordance with the objectives of endodontic treatment. Together with glidepath, it constitutes the most appropriate work sequence for the success of canal shaping. The purpose of this study was to compare the influence of glidepath on canal transportation and centring ability, using the WaveOne Gold with and without glidepath.

Methodology: 40 standard clear resin “S” shaped Endo Training Blocks (Dentsply, Maillefer, Switzerland) divided into two groups of 20 blocks were used in this study. The first group was prepared using WaveOne Gold Glider and WaveOne Gold while the second group was prepared with WaveOne Gold only. After the preparation, the amount of canal transportation, centring ratio, angle and radius of curvature, were measured on superimposed photos taken with an optical microscope. The two groups were statistically compared with analysis of variance, Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Student significant difference test. The level of significance was set at P<0.05.

Results: Less transportation and better centring ability occurred when using glidepath before root canal preparation (P<.0001). In these two groups there was a significant variation in the angles and radius of curvature compared to the initial values ​​and this variation was found to be reduced when using glidepath.

Conclusions: Canal modifications seem to be significantly reduced when previous glide path was performed before using the WaveOne Gold. The use of glidepath reduced significantly the root canal transportation, minimized the curvatures straightening after the preparation and revealed a better centring ability.