Radiographic evaluation of preoperative and postoperative quality of root canal retreatments: a retrospective study

The aim of this study was to examine radiographic quality of root canal fillings retrospectively in teeth undergoing retreatment compared with primary root canal treatment. The radiographic quality of root canal fillings was retrospectively assessed in the preoperative and postoperative stages of retreatment. Seventy-six teeth were included in the study. The radiographic quality of the treatments was evaluated in terms of length, density, and taper, based on the criteria of the European Society of Endodontology (ESE). Across all teeth, 28.9% were classified as having acceptable root canal treatment quality in the preoperative phase, whereas 86.5% were classified as acceptable postoperatively. Moreover, when assessing acceptability for each parameter individually, as well as for all three parameters combined, the postoperative results were significantly more favourable. Within the limitations of this retrospective study, the radiographic quality of root canal retreatments demonstrated a statistically significant improvement postoperatively compared with their preoperative state.