Effect of Different Drying Protocols on the Bond Strength of a Bioceramic Root Canal Sealer

This study aimed to investigate how varying levels of dentine moisture affect the push-out bond strength of a bioceramic root canal sealer. Forty-eight root canals were randomly divided into four groups according to drying protocol. Moist group: canals were dried until the last paper point appeared dry, Dry group: 95% ethanol was applied for 10 s, Half-dry group: canals were dried with a single paper point for 5 s, Wet group: canals were left completely flooded. All root canals were obturated with iRoot SP. Root slices were prepared from each sample for push-out testing. The data were statistically analysed using the Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U test for pairwise comparisons at a significance level of p < 0.05. The dry group had significantly higher bond strength compared to the wet and half-dry groups (p < 0.05), although no statistically significant difference was observed between the moist and dry groups (p > 0.05).