Treatment of infected dental pulps of monkeys with vancomycin and calcium hydroxide

Abstract

This study was undertaken to investigate histologically the effect of a combination of a potent antibiotic and calcium hydroxide when used as a medication in direct pulp therapy. The pulps of 74 teeth in one Macaca Speciosa monkey and two Macaca Nemestrina monkeys were exposed and left open to the oral environment for 48 hours to insure contamination. These pulps received direct treatment with one of four experimental medications: 1) starch and water; 2) vancomycin, starch and water; 3) calcium hydroxide, methyl cellulose and water; and 4) vancomycin, calcium hydroxide, methyl cellulose and water. In 30 days the teeth were removed from two animals and at 90 days from the other for histologic evaluation. A satisfactory response was observed in all the teeth treated with vancomycin, calcium hydroxide, methyl cellulose and water; in 94.4 per cent of the teeth treated with calcium hydroxide, methyl cellulose and water; in 33.3 per cent of those treated with vancomycin and starch; and in 11.2 per cent of those receiving starch and water. Complete bridging was seen in all teeth treated with vancomycin, calcium hydroxide, methyl cellulose and water. This was confirmed by the use of Procion brilliant red H-8BS dye and the study of serial sections. Under the conditions of this investigation, vancomycin in combination with calcium hydroxide and methyl cellulose was effective in controlling infection and promoting reparative dentin formation in monkeys.