(PR55) Prevalence of Teaching Apical Patency and Various Instrumentation and Obturation Techniques in United States Dental Schools: Two Decades Later

Abstract: Maintaining apical patency has been advocated to minimize canal transportation, ledge formation, and loss of length, despite increasing debris extrusion. According to Cailleteau et al, patency was taught in 50% of U.S. dental schools in 1997. To evaluate recent trends, this study aims to identify the frequency with which apical patency is taught, along with the primary techniques of working length determination, instrumentation, and obturation in U.S. dental schools. A survey consisting of 20 questions was distributed to 65 schools via email and was available from July 2021 to September 2021. The Chi-squared test was used to compare the results between schools that teach patency and those that do not. Of the 46 schools that responded, 73% reported that they teach patency. The most common tool to determine working length was an electronic apex locator at the 0.5 reading, followed by the APEX reading. No significant differences were found regarding the measuring point on the electronic apex locator between schools that teach patency and those that do not (P >0.05). Vortex Blue was the most frequently utilized file system in both predoctoral and postdoctoral programs. Lateral condensation was the primary obturation technique taught in predoctoral programs, while warm vertical condensation was the primary obturation technique in postdoctoral programs. The use of intraorifice barriers was reported by 60% of the schools. This study found that the frequency of teaching apical patency in U.S. dental schools has increased since 1997.