A Survey on Endodontic Irrigants used by Dentists in Pakistan

Objectives:
To investigate the attitude of dentists in Pakistan towards the use of irrigants in endodontics
To check if there is a difference in practice techniques of dentists working in private clinics compared to those working in teaching institutes.
Methods: A questionnaire was distributed by hand together with a covering letter to dentists in major cities of Pakistan (Lahore, Karachi, and Islamabad) which inquired about their choice of irrigant in teeth with a vital pulp, non-vital pulp, teeth with periapical radiolucency and teeth with immature apices. Questionnaire also sought information regarding volume and concentration of irrigant used for both mature and immature apices. Descriptive statistics & frequency distribution were computed. Chi-square test was applied to compare difference between dentists working in teaching hospitals versus those working in private practices. Level of significance was kept at 0.05
Results: Of the 400 survey forms sent, we received 269 filled forms giving us a response rate of 67%. Of the 269 forms we received, 158 were females (59%) and 111 were males (41%). Of the total number of responders, 134 dentists were practicing in teaching hospitals, while the remaining had private practices
Most commonly used irrigant for endodontics was sodium hypochlorite
Normal saline was preferred irrigant for teaching dentists
Private practitioners chose other irrigants over normal saline
There was a statistically significant difference between choices of irrigant used for performing endodontics on Teeth with vital pulp, non-vital pulp, with peri-apical radiolucency and teeth with immature apices, by dentists holding private practice versus teaching dentists
Conclusions: Sodium hypochlorite was the most preferred irrigating solution for vital pulp, non-vital pulp and for periapical radiolucency.
However normal saline was the preferred irrigating solution for immature apices.
The preferred concentration of sodium hypochlorite was 2.5% followed by a concentration of 0.5%.
There was a statistically significant difference observed between the full time teaching dentists and private practitioners on the choice of irrigant used