Journal of Dental Research, Vol 72, 987-992, Copyright © 1993 by International & American Associations for Dental Research Online Journals
Neural changes in periapical lesions after systemic steroids in the ferret
G. R. Holland
Department of Restorative Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Alberta, Canada.
This study was intended to clarify the relationship between the neural
changes which occur around the apex of the ferret canine after pulpectomy
and the inflammatory process induced by the procedure. In 12 young adult
ferrets, under general anesthesia, the pulps in the mandibular canine teeth
were removed and replaced with gutta percha and Grossman's sealer. Six of
the animals were treated with dexamethasone to reduce the inflammatory
response. Three months later, the animals, again under general anesthesia,
were perfused with a fixative mixture. Three unoperated animals that had
not been treated with dexamethasone were also perfused. The mandibular
canine teeth and their supporting tissues were removed, processed, and
serially sectioned. Three-dimensional reconstructions of the periapical
lesions in each animal were assembled and their volumes measured. The
density of innervation in the periapical region was estimated. The mean
lesion volume in the pulpectomized animals not treated with dexamethasone
was 3.54 (+/- 2.27) mm3 and in the dexamethasone-treated animals 1.33 (+/-
1.31) mm3. The differences were statistically significant when tested by
the Mann-Whitney U test (p < 0.01). Bacteria were not seen within any of
the lesions. The innervation density beneath the canines in the
pulpectomized animals not treated with dexamethasone was 164 units per mm2
(+/- 80) and in the steroid-treated animals 151 +/- 68 units per mm2. In
the control, untreated animals, the innervation density was 22 +/- 10 units
per mm2. The difference between the steroid-treated pulpectomized animals
and the untreated pulpectomized animals was not statistically significant
(p > 0.5).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
