Efficacy of polyethylene fibers in endodontically treated teeth. Literature review

Abstract

A non-systematic literature review is presented on the effectiveness of polyethylene fibers in endodontically treated teeth, based on the available scientific production between 2016 and 2023, extracted from the PubMed and Google Scholar databases. A total of 26 full articles were included. The review results revealed that 59% of the articles reported
superior outcomes of polyethylene composite resin fibers (FRC) compared to other alternatives, while 27.3% found no significant differences between polyethylene FRC and glass FRC. Only a small percentage, 6.9%, indicated that glass FRC exhibited better characteristics than polyethylene FRC. Based on the findings, it is concluded that the use of polyethylene fibers may contribute to improving the strength of endodontically treated teeth, especially those restored with direct composite restorations. These fibers may also have a positive effect on fracture resistance and the dispersion of masticatory forces. However, despite the promising results, the lack of sufficient scientific information and conclusive studies highlights the importance
of continuing to evaluate the performance and real effectiveness of polyethylene fibers in endodontic treatment to confirm their long-term clinical applicability.