Objective: To evaluate the clinical outcome of periapical endodontic surgery for teeth that can't be treated by nonsurgical endodontic methods.
Methods: Sixty-two affected teeth were chosen for surgical endodontic treatment, of which 31 teeth underwent periapical curettage and the others were treated by root-end resection, retrograde preparation and filling. A radiography was taken immediately after surgery and was compared with those taken at 12 and 24 months. The results of two groups were analyzed using the chi2 test.
Results: The success rate for retrograde filling was higher (85% after 12 months, 88% after 24 months) compared with that of periapical curettage (52% after 12 months, 45% after 24 months). The difference in success rate between the two groups was statistically significant.
Conclusions: Ultrasonic root-end preparation and retrograde filling is a good choice of treatment when the teeth can't be treated appropriately by nonsurgical treatment.