Baltic Dental and Maxillofacial Journal | ||||||||||
September, 2009, Vol. 11, No. 3 CONTENTS SCIENTIFIC ARTICLES © 2009 Stomatologija |
Stomatologija 2009; 11 (3): 92-96 973 KB Quality of root canal filling performed by undergraduate students of odontology at Kaunas University of Medicine in Lithuania Eduardas Kelbauskas, Laura Andriukaitiene, Irena Nedzelskiene Summary Inroduction. High-quality filling of root canals is one of indicators of successful endodontic treatment. However, poor-quality of the filling is still a common phenomenon in the work of general practitioners. Better training of dental students of modern odontology is possible solution of the problem. The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality of root canal filling performed by undergraduate students in single-rooted and multi-rooted teeth shaped by hand stainless-steel or rotary ProTaper instruments. Materials and methods. We analyzed 258 post-operative radiographs under illumination and ×7 magnification. 120 (46.5%) root canal were prepared using hand stainless-steel K-files, 138 (53.5%) using ProTaper rotary instruments. The filling was evaluated as adequate when it was located at 0-2 mm below the radiographic apex, under-filled >2 mm below the radiographic apex, over-filled, protruded through the radiographic apex. The filling homogeneity and condensation were also evaluated. Results. The filling height and position in relationship to the radiographic apex showed 84.1% were filled adequately, 10.5% under-filled, 5.42% over-filled. Homogeneity and density in 79.5% was good, in 20.5% poor. Conclusions. The quality of root canal filling was acceptable, because 84.1% cases were filled adequately. The density and homogeneity were statistically reliably better in the canals prepared using ProTaper System. Key words: undergraduate, dental education, obturation, root filling, quality, endodontic treatment. Received: 12 11 2008 Accepted for publishing: 28 09 2009 *Clinic of Dental and Oral Pathology, Kaunas University of Medicine, Kaunas, Lithuania Eduardas Kelbauskas* D.D.S., PhD, lecturer Laura Andriukaitiene* D.D.S., assistant professor Irena Nedzelskiene* biostatistician Address correspondence to: Eduardas Kelbauskas, Clinic of Dental and Oral Pathology, Kaunas University of Medicine, Eiveniu str. 2, Kaunas, Lithuania. E-mail address: edas@parabole.lt; irenaned@med.kmu.lt |
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