Pulpotomy of symptomatic permanent teeth with carious exposure using mineral trioxide aggregate.

INTRODUCTION: To evaluate the clinical and radiographic outcomes of pulpotomy treatment with mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) in symptomatic mature permanent teeth with carious exposure.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ten patients aged 27-54 years presented with 11 symptomatic permanent teeth (n=11). Each offending carious tooth was clinically and radiographically determined. We removed caries as conservatively as possible; however pulp exposure was inevitable. ProRoot MTA pulpotomy was performed on these teeth. The patients were followed-up clinically and radiographically for 24-42 months.

RESULTS: Immediate relief of patients` symptoms occurred. Moreover, teeth responses to the electric pulp tester were within normal range on follow-up appointment and the radiographs did not reveal any abnormality/lesion in the periapical areas.

CONCLUSION: Pulpotomy using MTA could be a good alternative for root canal therapy (RCT) for managing symptomatic mature permanent teeth with carious exposure, however further large-scale multicenter clinical trials are highly encouraged to confirm this hypothesis.