The Department of Conservative Dentistry at the College of Dentistry, University of Mosul, held a master’s thesis defense on Thursday, September 3, 2026, for the thesis entitled:

“The Micro-CT Assessment of Different Techniques for Removal of Intra-canal Medicaments”

The thesis was submitted by postgraduate student Amina Saad Ghanim Al-Banna.

The study aimed to compare the efficacy of three irrigation activation techniques in removing calcium hydroxide and bio-ceramic materials used as intracanal medicaments, using Micro-Computed Tomography (Micro-CT). The study evaluated the percentage of residual medicaments within the root canals following the use of three different techniques, in addition to investigating the effect of medicament type and its location within the root canal on removal efficacy.

The results revealed statistically significant differences among the removal techniques. The XP-endo Finisher technique recorded the lowest percentage of residual medicaments, indicating superior removal efficacy compared with the Sonic Endo-Activator and diode laser techniques. The latter two techniques recorded higher percentages of residual medicaments, with no statistically significant difference between them.

The results also demonstrated that the apical third of the root canal contained a significantly higher percentage of residual medicaments compared with the coronal and middle thirds. Regarding the type of medicament, Calcipex II was found to be the easiest to remove, recording the lowest mean percentage of residual material compared with Bio-C Temp.

The findings indicated that the selection of the activation technique and the type of medicament used can have a significant impact on the efficacy of intracanal medicament removal. The XP-endo Finisher technique also demonstrated superior performance in removing both Calcipex II and Bio-C Temp, particularly from the apical region, suggesting that it may represent a promising option for improving the removal of intracanal medicaments prior to completion of endodontic treatment.

The defense committee was chaired by Assistant Professor Dr. Maha Anwar Hussein, with Assistant Professor Dr. Najwan Fadhil Shihab and Assistant Professor Dr. Rasha Muzahim Maayouf serving as members. Professor Dr. Sawsan Hamed Ahmed supervised the thesis and served as a member of the defense committee.

At the conclusion of the defense, the thesis was accepted after the required amendments had been made.