title: Do general dental practitioners leave teeth on 'open drainage'?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  There is a need to ascertain the use of evidence-based dentistry in both primary and secondary care in order to tailor education. This study aims to evaluate the use of 'open drainage' as part of endodontic treatment in primary care in South Yorkshire.
  
  
  METHODS
  A questionnaire was circulated to 141 randomly selected general dental practitioners in the South Yorkshire area between January 2012 and January 2013.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The response rate was 79% (112/141). Five of the returned questionnaires were incomplete and therefore not usable. Seventy-nine percent of respondents were general dental practitioners (GDPs) working in mainly NHS or mixed practices. The year of graduation varied between 1970 and 2011. Forty-one percent (44/107) stated that they had never left a tooth on open drainage. Twenty-nine percent (31/107) stated that they sometimes leave teeth on open drainage. Of those respondents who currently leave teeth on open drainage, most (68%) would leave teeth on open drainage for one to two days or less.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This survey revealed that the practice of leaving teeth on open drainage is still present in general dental practice. Current guidelines do not comment on the use of this treatment modality. There is a need to ascertain further information about practices throughout the United Kingdom in order to provide clear evidence-based guidelines.
authors.affiliation: Head and Neck Rehabilitation Fellow in Restorative Dentistry, Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust, Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.|Consultant In Restorative Dentistry (Endodontics), Charles Clifford Dental Hospital, Sheffield Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Eliyas
authors.affiliation: Specialist Registrar in Restorative Dentistry, Charles Clifford Dental Hospital, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
authors.forename: M W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Barber
authors.affiliation: Consultant In Restorative Dentistry (Endodontics), Charles Clifford Dental Hospital, Sheffield Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Harris
mesh_terms: D003625:Data Collection; D004322:Drainage / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004739:England / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D019239:Practice Patterns, Dentists' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012390:Root Canal Therapy / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires