264 - Efficacy of Asynchronous Caries Detection in Pediatric Patients

Abstract:

Purpose: The purpose of this retrospective chart review was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of caries detection by tooth surface and location captured using asynchronous teledentistry compared to traditional clinical examination.

Methods: Electronic dental records of 25 patients aged 4-8 who received new or recall in person dental examinations were reviewed by two similarly trained pediatric dental residents. All patients were clinically examined by one of the two dental residents which included radiographs, imaging utilizing an intraoral camera, and recording the diagnosis of caries status by tooth surface. A minimum of 60 days later, the de-identified radiographs and images from each patient record were independently reviewed by each resident examiner and a determined diagnosis of caries status by tooth surface was separately recorded. Statistical analysis was performed to evaluate the overall percent agreement in caries diagnosis and to determine significance when compared by dental examiner, tooth location, tooth surface, and the extent of lesion.

Results: Overall caries diagnosis agreement of tooth surfaces (n=2528) between asynchronous teledentistry in-person examination by Examiner A and Examiner D was determined to be 79.4% and 69.6% respectively. Overall agreement in caries diagnosis by tooth surface between the two examiners was found to be 75.1%. No significant difference in percent agreement was found when comparing which dentist performed the in-person exam.

Conclusion: The preliminary findings of this pilot study suggest that asynchronous teledent examination can aid in carious lesion detection and may be a useful tool when clinical examination is not feasible.