Influence of the canal contents on the electrical assisted determination of the length of root canals.

The purpose of this study was to compare the influence of the root canal status on the determination of the root canal length by an electronic apex locator in vital and necrotic canals and canals with root canal filling retrieval. One hundred seven teeth with a total of 171 canals with various contents (105 vital pulp, 47 necrotic pulp, and 19 retrieval of root canal filling materials) were measured for root canal length in vivo with the AFA Apex Finder. The distance between the file tip and the radiographic apex was also determined on radiographs. In 86% of the evaluated roots, the file tip position as indicated by the Apex Finder was located within 0.5 mm of a point 1.0-mm short of the radiographic apex. The Apex Finder showed higher accuracy for determining the apical constriction in vital canals (93.9%) than in necrotic canals (76.6%), and this difference was statistically significant (p < or = 0.05). The Apex Finder indicated the point -1 mm +/- 0.5 mm in canals with retrieval of root canal filling materials in 68.4% of these cases, but because of the small number of retrieval cases, this is not comparable statistically with vital and necrotic cases. The authors concluded that the AFA Apex Finder is highly accurate in vital canals.