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Original Article

J Pak Dent Assoc. 2018; 27(2): 50-56


TRENDS IN CONTEMPORARY ENDODONTIC PRACTICE OF PAKISTAN: A NATIONAL SURVEY

Usman Anwer Bhatti, Beenish Qureshi, Saima Azam.




Abstract

Objective
The outcome of endodontic treatment is largely dependent on the selection of right armamentarium. The objective of this study was to determine the trends in contemporary endodontic practice of dental practitioners performing root canal treatment in Pakistan using a questionnaire based survey.
Material and Methods
This was a cross sectional study. To meet the objective of this study 518 questionnaires were distributed among the dental practitioners performing root canal treatment and associated with the academic dental institutions of Pakistan. Incompletely filled questionnaires and practitioners not willing to participate were excluded from the study. The questionnaire comprised of 22 questions addressing various aspects of endodontic treatment and the responses to these questions were analyzed using SPSS 22 to calculate frequencies and percentages.
Results
A total of 409 completed questionnaires were returned bringing the response rate to about 79%. Most of the respondents performed more than 10 root canal treatment procedures in a month (51.8%) comprising of a combination of anterior and posterior teeth including retreatment cases (40.1%). The diagnosis of endodontic cases was primarily established by history and radiographs alone (39.1%). Only 19.3% of the respondents reported the use of dental loupes for magnification. The use of preoperative angled radiographs for endodontic procedures was reported by 51.3% of the respondents while only 36.7% made use of film holding devices. About 46.9% reported only occasional use of rubber dam. Most preferred obturation technique and type of endodontic sealer was identified as cold lateral compaction (53.1%) and Calcium hydroxide (32.5%) respectively. While 68.5% respondents preferred multiple appointments with Calcium hydroxide as the most commonly used intracanal medicament (57.2%). The use of anesthesia was restricted to access preparation (36.9%) while 44.5% relied on a combination of antibiotics and NSAIDs for interappointment pain management. Radiographs (39.9%) were the most preferred means for working length determination. Sodium Hypochlorite (39.1%) was the most preferred irrigant with 63.6% making occasional use of EDTA. Activation of irrigants (58.4%) was not routinely employed and use of NiTi (54.5%) rotary instruments for reported to be occasional.
Conclusion
This study observed deficiencies among dental practitioners in Pakistan providing endodontic treatment which should be addressed to improve the quality of endodontic care.

Key words: Questionnaire; Root canal treatment; Endodontists; Evidence based practice; Calcium Hydroxide; Sodium Hypochlorite






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