The haemostatic efficacy and foreign body reaction of epinephrine–Impregnated polyurethane foam in osseous defects

Abstract

The objective of this study was to compare the haemostatic efficacy and foreign body reaction of epinephrine–impregnated cotton pellets with those of epinephrine-impregnated polyurethane (PU) foam cubes in osseous defects created in guinea pigs. Initially, these substances were randomly applied to the osseous defects in guinea pigs for 2 min and blood loss was measured. The animals were then sacrificed 7 weeks later and the degree of foreign body reaction was scored. The data were analysed by the independent-samples Kruskal-Wallis test. Epinephrine-impregnated PU foam cubes showed significantly better haemostatic effect compared to epinephrine–impregnated cotton pellets. The PU foam containing epinephrine specimens elicited significantly less foreign body reaction compared to epinephrine cotton pellets (P < 0.05). Based on the results of this study, it is concluded that epinephrine-impregnated PU foam cubes are a good alternative to epinephrine-impregnated cotton pellets as a local haemostatic agent in endodontic surgery.