Objective: This study evaluated the adhesion probability of three common microflora present in the oral cavity as Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus mutans and Candida albicans to the three frequently used post systems: Stainless Steel metallic post, non-metallic Composite Fiber post and Quartz Fiber post. Materials and Methods: To compare the adhesion rate, fifteen posts; five of each material type were tested after impregnating them in salivary substitute for 1 hour, and each post type was cultured with the three different pathogens separately using BHI and sucrose broth respectively at 37°C incubation for 4 weeks. Miles and Mishra standard methodology were followed to form microbial biofilms and results were analyzed by counting of colony-forming units (CFUs/mL). Results: The highest probability of bacterial adhesion for Staphylococcus aureus followed by Candida albicans was seen with quartz fiber post. However, the adherence ratio when evaluated statistically was not significant with P-value > 0.05. The evaluation of mean values of each indicates a slightly increased adhesion of Staphylococcus aureus (1.94 x 104) and Candida albicans (12.10 x 106) to quartz post. In case of Stainless steel, the mean values of S. aureus (1.05 x 104) showed a slight decrease in adhesion when compared to composite fiber post (1.21 x 104). Candida albicans population adhered more to stainless steel (6.63 x 106) when compared to composite fiber post. Conclusion: In this pilot study, maximum growth of microorganisms to quartz fiber post material was observed, although a further large sample size is required to corroborate the findings. If confirmed, with larger data sample, the quartz fiber post can be avoided in cases of periapical inflammation and retreatment cases requiring posts.

“A Comparative Evaluation of Microbial Adhesion of Oral Pathogens to Three Different Types of Post system: An Invitro Study”

Objective: This study evaluated the adhesion probability of three common microflora present in the oral cavity as Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus mutans and Candida albicans to the three frequently used post systems: Stainless Steel metallic post, non-metallic Composite Fiber post and Quartz Fiber post. Materials and Methods: To compare the adhesion rate, fifteen posts; five of each material type were tested after impregnating them in salivary substitute for 1 hour, and each post type was cultured with the three different pathogens separately using BHI and sucrose broth respectively at 37°C incubation for 4 weeks. Miles and Mishra standard methodology were followed to form microbial biofilms and results were analyzed by counting of colony-forming units (CFUs/mL). Results: The highest probability of bacterial adhesion for Staphylococcus aureus followed by Candida albicans was seen with quartz fiber post. However, the adherence ratio when evaluated statistically was not significant with P-value > 0.05. The evaluation of mean values of each indicates a slightly increased adhesion of Staphylococcus aureus (1.94 x 104) and Candida albicans (12.10 x 106) to quartz post. In case of Stainless steel, the mean values of S. aureus (1.05 x 104) showed a slight decrease in adhesion when compared to composite fiber post (1.21 x 104). Candida albicans population adhered more to stainless steel (6.63 x 106) when compared to composite fiber post. Conclusion: In this pilot study, maximum growth of microorganisms to quartz fiber post material was observed, although a further large sample size is required to corroborate the findings. If confirmed, with larger data sample, the quartz fiber post can be avoided in cases of periapical inflammation and retreatment cases requiring posts.