Omega 3 based formulations as new possible pulpotomy agents for primary teeth: histopathological and antimicrobial study

Introduction Pulpotomy is a therapeutic procedure comprising surgical amputation of coronally inflamed pulp. Formocresol (FC) continues to be the most widely used pulpotomy medicament for primary teeth. Unfortunately, the cytotoxic and mutagenic effects of FC draw the attention for the need of an effective safer alternative. The use of natural products as capping material provides a promising substitute. Omega 3 (w3) is one of the most widely used natural material to impart therapeutic function. Oral administration of w3 showed promising anti-inflammatory effect in periodontal diseases but no investigation was conducted to monitor its effect locally in the teeth. Objective The aim of this work was to evaluate w3 as pulpotomy agent with reference to FC. The study was extended to assess the antimicrobial activity of the oil. Methodology The oil was incorporated in methylcellulose gel, zinc oxide pastes in addition to its application in neat form. In vivo study was conducted on puppies' premolars at 2, 4, and 6 weeks. Different w3 based agents were applied to pulp stump's for subsequent histopathological study. An in vitro antimicrobial activity of these new agents was also assessed using resazurin microtiter assay. Results The histological study revealed the following: paste and neat w3 showed less inflammation and more preservation of odontoblastic layer than gel and FC. For antimicrobial assay, Staphylococcus aureus was resistant to w3 alone at the highest tested concentration, while Streptococcus mutans and Candida albicans were sensitive to w3 combinations. Conclusions w3 is considered as a safer promising pulpotomy agent especially in paste and neat oil forms when compared to FC and it has better antibacterial effect, especially in combination with zinc oxide powder.