The effect of apical preparation size on irrigant flow in root canals evaluated using an unsteady Computational Fluid Dynamics model

Abstract

Apical preparation size affected irrigant replacement, the shear stress on the canal wall and the pressure at the apical foramen. Root canal enlargement to sizes larger than 25 appeared to improve the performance of syringe irrigation. Adequate space between the needle and the canal wall should be ensured to allow for an effective reverse flow of the irrigant towards the canal orifice.