A Case-Control Split-Mouth Study of Comparison of Maximum Occlusal Forces in Endodontically Treated Teeth and Vital Counterparts.

Purpose: To compare the maximum occlusal force in endodontically treated teeth and their vital contralateral counterparts and to evaluate the intraoral factors affecting them.

Materials and methods: Thirty adult participants presented with an endodontically treated tooth and its vital contralateral counterpart were recruited, with 15 males and females in each group. Maximum occlusal forces were measured using a wireless sensor network occlusal force recorder, and the mean maximum occlusal force of endodontically treated teeth was compared with that of their vital contralateral counterparts. Multiple-factor ANOVA was used to examine the association between various clinical factors and maximum occlusal force.

Results: The mean maximum occlusal force for endodontically treated teeth was significantly higher than their vital counterparts (215.44 ± 74.11N and 202.40 ± 70.67N, respectively) (P < 0.001). Among the clinical factors, the maximum occlusal forces were significantly influenced by the location of teeth (P < 0.01) and the crown root ratio (P = 0.01). Upon further analysis of endodontically treated teeth and control groups, the location of teeth was identified as a sole factor associated with maximum occlusal force, with P < 0.05.

Conclusion: The maximum occlusal forces for endodontically treated teeth were statistically significantly higher than those of their corresponding vital contralateral teeth.