초록 |
Elimination of the smear layer and bacteria in the root canal is the most important in the endodontic treatment, and various irrigation devices have been developed. Nevertheless, it is hard to eliminate the smear layer and bacteria completely. In this paper, a micro bubble irrigation system has been developed for the root canal cleaning of tooth. Micro bubbles are generated when pressurized fluids passing through a porous material inside a hand-piece nozzle, and the bubbly flows excited by ultrasonic vibration are observed using a high-speed camera and a microscope. The results show that the diameter and number of bubbles increases with the applied pressure, and there found an optimum excitation frequency in order to minimize the bubble size. From in-vitro tests, it is also verified that the developed bubble irrigation system has the ability of antibacterial and infection removal. Thus, this biocompatible system would be well suited for root canal cleaning. |