A survey of endodontic irrigants used by dentists with varying years of professional experience

Nikolai Sharkov,Elka Radeva,Gencho Genchev

doi:10.2478/bjdm-2018-0004

Abstract

Background/Aim: The aim of the present study was to describe the use of irrigants by dentists in Bulgaria in relation to their years of professional experience. Material and Methods: The data were collected with the help of a questionnaire. The survey included questions concerning frequency of irrigants applied, their respective concentrations, as well as spectrum of disinfectants used in endodontics. In addition, information about respondents' age, years of professional experience, gender, and main areas of continuing education was collected. The statistical analysis was performed with the help of IBM SPSS Statistics 22.0. Results: 219 replies were analysed (response rate 27,3%). The majority of the respondents (31.1%) had 21 to 30 years of professional experience. 18.7% had over 30 years. Most of the practitioners reported their continuing education to be in the area of general dentistry - 52%, while about 1.2 % had specialised in endodontics. Dentists with long-standing professional experience use predominantly H2O2 - 78%. Dentists with least experience use 17% EDTA - 53.6%. No significant differences were established for the use of sodium hypochlorite and 2% chlorhexidine. 82% of the respondents use conventional needle 27G for intracanal irrigation; 60% never use ultrasonic irrigation. Conclusions: The analysis of the usage of irrigants shows that many general dental practitioners do not follow the quality recommended protocols for endodontic irrigation protocols.

Highlights

Endodontic irrigants play a crucial role in removing debris, microorganisms and smear layer
The majority of dentists (31.1%) had 21-30 years of professional experience. 18.7% had over 30 years
For other endodontic irrigants: 2.5% NaOCl, 2% CHX, 5.25% NaOCl and 10% Citric acid no significant correlations were found between the usage and the years of professional experience of the respondents. 2.5% sodium hypochlorite is more often used by respondents with professional experience between 21-30 years – 66.2%, while 5.25% sodium hypochlorite is applied by dentists with up to 10-year professional experience - 64.3%. 2% CHX is more often used by dentists with over 30 year professional experience

Summary

Introduction

Endodontic irrigants play a crucial role in removing debris, microorganisms and smear layer. There are many endodontic solutions available which claim to help prepare and disinfect the root canal system[1,2,3]. A few have evidence to support their clinical use. The studies have observed that Sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) in range from 0.5% to 5.25% was the most commonly used irrigating solution, because of its antibacterial activity and ability to dissolve vital and necrotic organic tissue. Sodium hypochlorite has no effects on the inorganic components of the smear layer. Acid solutions (3-10-40% Citric acid) and chelating agents (15-17% EDTA, Smear clear (Sybron Endo, Orange, CA) are recommended for removing the smear layer during chemo-mechanical preparation and as a final irrigation solution[3,4]

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Discussion

Conclusion