Comparative antibacterial efficacy of calcium hydroxide, diclofenac sodium, chitosan, and boric acid against Enterococcus faecalis: an in vitro study.

This study evaluated the antimicrobial efficacy of calcium hydroxide (CH), diclofenac sodium (DCS), chitosan (CHT), and boric acid (BA) against Enterococcus faecalis. Seventy extracted maxillary teeth were instrumented, inoculated with E. faecalis, and incubated for 21 days. The specimens were then filled with CH, DCS, CHT, or BA (n = 15) as intracanal medicaments and incubated for 7 days, after which antibacterial efficacy was assessed using CFU/mL counts (p < 0.05). All medicaments significantly reduced bacterial counts. BA (67.10%) and DCS (65.20%) achieved significantly greater reductions than CH (42.60%) and CHT (46.40%) (p < 0.05), corresponding to approximately 65-67% versus 42-46% bacterial reduction. These findings demonstrate markedly greater antibacterial efficacy of BA and DCS under the conditions tested.