title: Current trends in use of intracanal medications in dental care facilities: questionnaire-based survey on training dental hygienists at educational institutions.
abstract: The success of root canal therapy is dependent not only on removal of infected pulp (pulpectomy) followed by root canal enlargement, but also on the pharmacological effects of intracanal medications. Various intracanal medications are used. Formaldehyde preparations such as formocresol were common in the past, but these are no longer used in Europe or the US due to the biological toxicity of formaldehyde. In this study, a questionnaire was used to determine current trends in the use of intracanal medications at dental care facilities where dental hygiene students undergo practical training. The questionnaire comprised questions regarding the types of frequently used intracanal medications and their methods of application at dental care facilities in Saitama and Shizuoka prefectures. The results indicated that calcium hydroxide preparations were more commonly used in Europe or the US. However, these results also revealed that formaldehyde preparations were frequently used, which slightly differs from the scenario in Europe and the US. This study revealed that multiple intracanal medications were used for root canal therapy. Furthermore, it was also observed that cotton plugs were generally used as applicator tips for intracanal medications, whereas the use of absorbent paper points was relatively uncommon. The results suggest that the cost of absorbent paper points needs to be reduced.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Oral Health Science, Tokyo Dental College, Misaki-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan. mfurusaw@tdc.ac.jp
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Furusawa
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Souhei
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hosokawa
authors.forename: Yuugo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ariizumi
mesh_terms: D002126:Calcium Hydroxide / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D003756:Dental Hygienists / Q000193:education; D004202:Disinfectants / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005557:Formaldehyde / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D012388:Root Canal Irrigants / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000737:chemistry; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D004202:Disinfectants; D012388:Root Canal Irrigants; D005557:Formaldehyde; D002126:Calcium Hydroxide