Combination of Buffered Anesthetic to Treat Mandibular Molars

May 12, 2025 updated by: Kenneth J. Spolnik DDS, Indiana University

Buffered vs Unbuffered Local Anesthesia Using Lidocaine, Carbocaine, and Articaine in Mandibular Molars Diagnosed With Symptomatic Irreversible Pulpitis

The purpose of this study is to determine whether a combination of anesthetics (numbing medicine) will adequately anesthetize teeth over a different combination. A second purpose is to see if the time needed to numb the nerve in a tooth is different between the two anesthetics.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Terminated

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

60 human subjects with Symptomatic Irreversible Pulpitis (SIP) in mandibular molars will be randomly allocated into 2 groups. One group will receive a combination of: 1 cartridge of buffered 2% lidocaine w/ 1:100k epi via inferior alveolar nerve block (IANB) followed by 1 cartridge of 3% mepivacaine via IANB. This will be followed by 0.5 cartridges (0.9mL) of buffered 4% articaine with 1:100k epi via buccal infiltration and 0.5 cartridges of buffered 4% articaine with 1:100k epi via lingual infiltration. All IANB injections will include a lingual block. The second group will be provided an unbuffered version of the same combination. An electronic pulp tester (EPT) will be used to determine the vitality of the treated tooth. Endodontic treatment will be initiated after two consecutive EPT readings of 80, displaying pulpal anesthesia. Profound pulpal anesthesia is described by the patient's report on the visual analog scale after the pulpotomy.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
40

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Phase 4

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.
  • Name: Kenneth Spolnik, DDS
  • Phone Number: 317-274-7280
  • Email: kspolnik@iu.edu

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Indiana
      • Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, 46202
        • ndiana University School of Dentistry Graduate Endodontics Dept.

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Be between the ages of 18 and 80 years old
  • Have the ability and willingness to independently consent to treatment and study participation
  • Have an uncomplicated medical history (ASA I and II)
  • Not be pregnant
  • Have no allergies local anesthetics/sulfites (confirmed or self-reported)
  • Not be taking any medications that may affect the proper assessment of the anesthetic (no acetaminophen or short-acting NSAIDs such as ibuprofen within the previous 6 hours; no long-acting NSAIDs such as naproxen within the previous 16 hours)
  • Not require nitrous oxide during treatment, and the injection area should appear healthy with no other pre-existing conditions or infections that may compromise an accurate collection of data
  • Be experiencing signs of irreversible pulpitis (an exaggerated response to cold that lingers longer than 10 seconds) in a mandibular molar at the time of conducting the study

Exclusion Criteria:

  • A negative response to cold in the proposed treatment tooth
  • A radiographic periradicular pathosis more advanced than a widened periodontal ligament or have an intraoral swelling

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Triple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Buffered
Buffered 2% lidocaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine Buffered 4% articaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine Buffered 3% mepivacaine Buffered local anesthetic (addition of sodium bicarbonate to make a 10% buffered solution)
Drug: Sodium bicarbonate
Onpharma's Onset sodium bicarbonate buffer to be added to a standard cartridge of dental local anesthetic
Other Names:
  • Onset Sodium Bicarbonate Inj., 8.4%, USP Neutralizing Additive Solutio
Drug: Lidocaine w/ epi
Septodont's standard formulation of 2% lidocaine with epinephrine
Other Names:
  • 2% lidocaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine
Drug: Articaine w/ epi
Septodont's standard formulation of 4% articaine with epinephrine
Other Names:
  • 4% articaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine
Drug: Mepivacaine plain
Septodont's standard formulation of 3% mepivacaine
Other Names:
  • 3% Mepivacaine
Active Comparator: Unbuffered
Unbuffered 2% lidocaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine Unbuffered 4% articaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine Unbuffered 3% mepivacaine Standard local anesthetics
Drug: Lidocaine w/ epi
Septodont's standard formulation of 2% lidocaine with epinephrine
Other Names:
  • 2% lidocaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine
Drug: Articaine w/ epi
Septodont's standard formulation of 4% articaine with epinephrine
Other Names:
  • 4% articaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine
Drug: Mepivacaine plain
Septodont's standard formulation of 3% mepivacaine
Other Names:
  • 3% Mepivacaine

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Median Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) Score as a Measure of Profoundness of Pulpal Anesthesia
Time Frame: Up to 20 minutes post-drug administration
Patient will report their comfort during treatment based on a visual analogue scale (VAS) graphic. Visual analog scale (VAS) is based on a scale of 0-10 related to patient comfort. A VAS score of 10 would mean the patient was extremely uncomfortable during treatment indicating there was inadequate anesthesia. A VAS score of 0 indicates no pain.
Up to 20 minutes post-drug administration

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Median Time to Profound Pulpal Anesthesia
Time Frame: Up to 15 minutes post-drug administration
An electronic pulp tester will be used to assess anesthesia after anesthetic is administered. The median time needed to achieve profound pulpal anesthesia for the two groups will be calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared with a log-rank test, with patients who failed to achieve profound pulpal anesthesia censored at 15 minutes.
Up to 15 minutes post-drug administration

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Indiana University

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Study Chair: Kenneth Spolnik, DDS, Program Director

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
December 5, 2023

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
May 15, 2024

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
May 15, 2024

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
September 14, 2023

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
September 14, 2023

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
September 21, 2023

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
May 13, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 12, 2025

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
May 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 17799

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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