Differential effectiveness of calcium hydroxide with 2% chlorhexidine digluconate and 25% propolis as a root canal medicament against Enterococcus faecalis (In vitro)

Background: One of the most common microorganisms found in infected teeth after root canal treatment is Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis). This bacteria can cause failure in root canal treatment, so it is necessary to provide intracanal medicament, such as calcium hydroxide, which can increase antibacterial effectiveness by adding a mixing agent. One of the calcium hydroxide mixing ingredients is chlorhexidine (CHX) digluconate gel 2%, which can increase the activity of hydroxyl ions in calcium hydroxide. A natural mixing ingredient is 25% propolis, which contains flavonoids with an antibacterial effect. Objective: The aim is to determine the difference in antibacterial effectiveness between a combination of calcium hydroxide with 2% CHX digluconate or 25% propolis as an intracanal medicament against E. faecalis (in vitro) bacteria. Methods: This research used an experimental in vitro laboratory test with 18 teeth that had a single root canal. Teeth were sterilized, had root canal treatment, and cut off at the crown. Antibacterial efficacy was calculated by measuring optical density (OD) values with spectrophotometry. The data were analyzed using the Kruskal–Wallis test followed by the Mann–Whitney test. Results: The largest OD difference group was in the calcium hydroxide mixture 25% propolis than calcium hydroxide mixture 2% CHX gel. Conclusion: There was a difference in the antibacterial power of the intracanal medicament, calcium hydroxide combination with 2% CHX digluconate gel or 25% propolis. The combination of calcium hydroxide with propolis 25% more effective than the mixture of calcium hydroxide with 2% CHX digluconate as root canal medicament against E. faecalis bacteria.