The application of antibiotics and other drugs to infected dental pulps of monkeys

Abstract

The pulps of 112 permanent teeth of monkeys were surgically exposed and left open to the oral environment for 25 to 27 hours. Then one-third of the exposed, infected pulps were capped with a paste of calcium hydroxide and tap water; one-third were treated with an antibiotic paste compased of erythromycin estolate 10 per cent, streptomycin sulfate 10 per cent, and starch q.s. as the vehicle; and one-third were treated with a paste of zinc oxide powder, one drop of eugenol and one drop of formocresol. The teeth were extracted after one and two years post-operative intervals and were microscopically evaluated. The calcium hydroxide treated teeth had the highest percentage of satisfactory pulpal responses (91.6 per cent). The antibiotic treated teeth were considered to have had satisfactory pulpal responses in 87.5 per cent and the zinc oxide, eugenol and formocresol treated teeth showed satisfactory pulpal response in only 58.0 per cent of the teeth treated with this paste. After two years, several of the antibiotic teeth were considered to have had a satisfactory pulp response even though the calcific bridges were incomplete. The histologic findings were encouraging with calcium hydroxide and the antibiotic paste and warrant clinical investigations.