Comparative Evaluation of Hand K-flex Files, Pediatric Rotary Files, and Reciprocating Files on Instrumentation Time, Postoperative Pain, and Child's Behavior in 4-8-year-old Children.

Abstract

BackgroundA pulpectomy is regarded as the choice modality of treatment for necrotic teeth. The use of hand files, though popular traditionally as a gold standard, may be challenging due to increased chairside time. Postoperative pain is one of the most common complications of pulpectomy and may be unpleasant for a child/pedodontist. Rotary files were found to reduce instrumentation time, reduce apical extrusion, and in turn reduce pain but there is a lack of studies in primary teeth particularly for pediatric and reciprocating file systems. The increased number of options available today makes it a dilemma for the operator to choose a suitable file system.Aim and objectiveThe study aimed to evaluate and compare the instrumentation time, postoperative pain, and effect on child's behavior among three groups, i.e., hand K-flex files (group I), pediatric rotary files (group II), and reciprocating files (group III).Materials and methodsA total of 75 primary molar teeth after meeting inclusion criteria were randomly allocated into three groups. During the procedure, step-wise instrumentation time was recorded using a stopwatch. The child's behavior pre- and postoperatively was assessed by an evaluator. The postoperative pain (up to 1 week) was assessed by a questionnaire.ResultsThe mean age of children taken for the study was 6.03 ± 1.2 years with 46 males and 29 females. The mean biomechanical preparation time was observed to be significantly shorter in the pediatric rotary and reciprocating file groups vs hand K-flex files (p < 0.001**). The postoperative pain after 6 hours had a mean value of 0.88 + 0.9 for the hand K-flex file group which was significantly higher than both rotary file groups (p < 0.05*). The pre- and postoperative behavior revealed no significant difference.ConclusionThe clinical performance of pediatric and reciprocating files was superior, but the choice of file system did not significantly alter behavior.How to cite this articleTyagi R, Khatri A, Kalra N, et al. Comparative Evaluation of Hand K-flex Files, Pediatric Rotary Files, and Reciprocating Files on Instrumentation Time, Postoperative Pain, and Child's Behavior in 4–8-year-old Children. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2021;14(2):201–206.