LAUSR

Abstract Objective  The current research aimed to evaluate the histopathological pulpal alterations in dogs' teeth following direct pulp capping using either mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) or human placenta extract (HPE). Materials and Methods  Forty-eight incisors with mature apices from four dogs were involved. The teeth were randomly allocated to three groups ( n  = 16) based on the material utilized for direct pulp capping: MTA, HPE, and Teflon as the negative control group. All involved teeth were capped and restored at the same session. Each group was subsequently divided into two subgroups ( n  = 8) based on the post treatment evaluation period: 2 and 4 weeks. The histopathologic changes in each specimen's pulp tissues, including pulp inflammation, hyperemia, necrosis, and dentin bridge development, were assessed. Then, all the data were statistically analyzed using chi-square, t -test, and one-way analysis of variance ( p  < 0.05). Results  At 2 weeks, chronic inflammation was observed in 100% of MTA and 50% of HPE subgroups with a significant difference between them whereas the remaining 50% exhibited no inflammation. In contrast to Teflon that showed acute inflammation, remission of inflammation was time-dependent at both MTA and HPE subgroups as there was a substantial difference between the 2- and 4-weeks evaluation periods within the same group. However, throughout the initially observed 2 weeks, all subgroups exhibited essentially no complete calcified bridge; at 4 weeks, all MTA and HPE subgroups developed dentin bridge formation, with a significant difference between them regarding its thickness. Conclusion  HPE is a promising pulp-capping material inducing less intense chronic inflammation accompanied with thicker dentine bridge formation in comparison to MTA.