Differences on the Obturating Quality in Primary Teeth Between Undergraduate and Postgraduate Students - A Comparative Study

Early childhood caries is one of the most common serious public health diseases in most of the countries across the globe. When left untreated dental caries will progress into the dentin followed by pulpal inflammation. In primary teeth, when the pulpal tissue is irreversibly inflamed or necrotic, pulpectomy is the treatment of choice where the primary root canals are debrided off the infected tissues and shaped to receive a suitable obturation material. Managing dental caries successfully in a pediatric population involves many challenges and requires efficient skills and knowledge in framing a treatment plan with good prognosis. The purpose of this study was to determine the differences in the clinical skill and efficiency in primary teeth root canal obturation between undergraduate and postgraduate students. This comparative study was carried out retrospectively by verifying the case reports and post-operative radiographs for pulpectomy procedures in primary teeth done by the undergraduate and postgraduate students. 50% of the cases done by the postgraduates were optimally obturated whereas only 20% were found to be optimally obturated in the procedures done by the undergraduate students. In conclusion the Obturation quality was found to be better in the procedures done by the postgraduate students, when compared with that of undergraduates