Clinical and radiographic assessment of root canal treatments performed by dental students

Abstract

Introduction: Retrospective assessment of procedures performed in dental school clinics is a valuable tool to critically assess the teaching/ learning process. Objective: This retrospective study assessed the success rate of root canal treatments executed by dental students during a two-year time span. Material and methods: Patients who had undergone root canal treatments at the clinics of the School of Dentistry of Unochapecó during 2011-2013 were recalled for assessment of the quality of the procedure and the associated coronal restoration. The quality of the root canal treatments was assessed clinically and radiographically, while the coronal restorations were assessed clinically by a trained dental student. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics and chi-square test (α=0.05). Results: Thirtytwo patients returned for evaluation of 38 root canal treatments and coronal restorations. The success of root canal treatments was 89.5%, while 78.5% of the coronal restorations were considered successful. A significant association was observed between the success of the root canal treatments and the quality of the coronal restoration (p<0.005) and the apical length of the root canal filling (p<0.011). The presence of flaws within the filling material was not significantly associated to the success/failure of the root canal treatment (p=0.459). Conclusion: A high success rate of root canal treatment performed by dental students at an average 13-month evaluation period was observed. An adequate coronal restoration and a good apical sealing is required for a good prognosis of teeth undergoing root canal treatment.

Radiographic technical quality of root canal treatment performed by undergraduate dental students at the Academy Dental Teaching Hospital, UMST, Sudan

“…These findings when compared with previously reported studies were either comparable,[421] less,[311] or superior. [691319] Nevertheless, it was difficult to compare some studies because of the differences in study design, standardization of methods, evaluation criteria, as well as interexaminer variability.…”

“…[2] Many studies have evaluated the technical quality of RCT performed by undergraduate students, with a range of acceptable outcomes. [345678]…”

A Clinical Audit on the Follow-up Rate and Endodontic Outcome of Root Canal Therapy Performed by Dental Undergraduates

“…This discrepancy could be due to the limited number of patients' assessment in the present study. However, the present result was in accordance with Benvenutti et al [23] who revealed that poor condensation of root canal filling had no association with the failure of root canal therapy. To justify the result of this study, it is believed that reasons other than technical quality of RCT may affect the endodontic outcome.…”

“…Dental undergraduates in the current study achieved an endodontic success rate of 66.7% after an average of 2.8 years follow-up, which was lower as compared to the dental undergraduates in other countries [20][21][22][23] and similar to Ng et al [19]. In UK, Heling and Tamshe [20] reported an overall success rate of 70% in 213 teeth that were treated by dental undergraduates.…”

Análise radiográfica das aberturas endodônticas de dentes de pacientes referenciados a um Centro de Especialidades Odontológicas Radiographic analysis of endodontic access of patients referenced to a Center of Dental Specialities

“…Outro problema reside no fato de que as US, em geral, não têm aparelho de raio x. Nessas circunstâncias é possível que o cirurgião-dentista não consiga diagnosticar de modo apurado a dimensão da lesão de cárie [1,3,17], ou seja, acabe sendo mais conservador durante a remoção do tecido, o que justificaria os valores encontrados referentes à presença de cárie remanescente nos elementos dentários encaminhados ao CEO.…”