Evaluation of cell attachment on different air abrasive powders applied root surfaces: An In Vitro study

The aim of this study is in vitro evaluation of the effects of three different air polishing powders (APP) with four different particle sizes for their impact on surface roughness (SR) and periodontal ligament fibroblast (PDLF) attachment. After extraction of impacted third molars 50 dentin specimens randomly divided into 5 groups as control group and other four groups instrumented with 4 different APP; trehalose-based air polishing powder (TPAP) with 30µm grain size, trehalose-based air polishing powder with 65µm grain size, glycine -based air polishing powder (GPAP) with 25µm grain size and erythritol + chlorhexidine 0.3% based air polishing powder (EPAP) with 14µm grain size. The attachment of fibroblasts were evaluated under microphotographic magnification using scanning electron microscope (SEM). The morphology of the obtained fibroblast cells was analyzed. The analysis of the SR following the procedures found statistically significant in all groups, however the Ra values of Group 3 and Group 4 were higher than those of Group 2 (p=0.001) and Group 5 (p=0.001). The Ra values of Group 2 were higher than those of Group 5 (p=0.001). No statistical differences between the groups were found in terms of the cell viability and size of the fibroblast cells size classified as maximum (p>0.05). Significant differences observed between the groups in terms of fibroblasts morphology (p=0.001). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study comparing 4 different APPs in terms of SR and PDFL attachment. Within the limitations of this in vitro study, although all AP-treated groups exhibited significantly different surface roughness compared to the untreated control group, the induced roughness did not affect fibroblast viability or surface area. The attachment of PDLF cells was superior on fine powder-treated surfaces compared to the untreated group, with the highest attachment observed in the Group 3 and Group 4. This in vitro study warrants further clinical studies supported with microbiological aspects.