Management of dentin hypersensitivity by practitioners in The National Dental Practice-Based Research Network

Abstract

Objectives Dentin hypersensitivity (DH) is a condition commonly encountered in clinical dental practice. The primary objective of this study was to identify the treatments recommended to manage DH among United States dentists. Methods A multicenter study of 1862 patients with DH, diagnosed and treated by 171 National Dental Practice-Based Research Network dentists was conducted. Results The most common treatment recommended was over-the-counter desensitizing (OTC) potassium nitrate toothpaste (alone or in combination with other treatments) to 924 (50%) patients; followed by application of fluoride varnish (FV) to 516 (28%) patients; and then by prescription of fluoride toothpaste to 314 (17%) patients. Restorative treatments were recommended to 151 (8%) of patients. The most common single treatment recommendation was desensitizing OTC potassium nitrate toothpaste, recommended to 335 (18%) patients. The most frequent combination of two treatment modalities was FV and desensitizing OTC potassium nitrate toothpaste, recommended to 100 (5%) patients. A total of 48% (890/1862) of patients with DH were recommended one treatment modality and 35% (644/1862) were recommended a combination of two treatment modalities, most frequently (100/1862, 5%) an application of FV along with desensitizing OTC potassium nitrate toothpaste. Conclusions Desensitizing OTC potassium nitrate toothpaste and fluoride products were the most widely recommended products to manage DH in the practice setting. Practical implications Our results suggest that the majority of network clinicians preferred noninvasive treatment modalities when treating DH.

Electronic and paper mode of data capture when assessing patient‐reported outcomes in the National Dental Practice‐Based Research Network

“…Seventy‐four percent of patients were females and 26% were males. The sociodemographic characteristics of the study patients and treatment modalities recommended for dentin hypersensitivity are described elsewhere . Eighty‐five percent of the study patients chose to complete the follow‐up assessments electronically and the remaining 15% chose to complete the assessments using a paper mode via postal mail.…”

“…Each patient provided informed consent to participate in the study, obtained after the nature of the procedures had been explained fully. The inclusion and exclusion criteria for the patients are described elsewhere …”

“…The inclusion and exclusion criteria for the patients are described elsewhere. 5 At the baseline visit, the practitioners completed the patients' oral examination, confirmed the diagnosis of dentin hypersensitivity, completed a dental history form and recommended and/or prescribed or applied treatment for dentin hypersensitivity. Study patients completed a demographic form and a patient-reported pain form.…”

“…The objectives of this study were to describe the approach used in the National Dental Practice‐Based Research Network (National Dental PBRN) to capture patient‐reported outcomes and to compare electronic and paper modes of data capture in a specific network study, called the Management of Dentin Hypersensitivity Study. The study's main clinical findings have been reported previously . This manuscript is limited to reporting the methodological findings to capture patient‐reported outcomes as outlined in the objectives above.…”

“…The study's main clinical findings have been reported previously. 5,6 This manuscript is limited to reporting the methodological findings to capture patient-reported outcomes as outlined in the objectives above.…”