Pulp Therapy
Aekta Patel, DMD
Pediatric Dental Resident
Holyoke Health Center
NYU Langone - Massachusetts site
West Springfield, Massachusetts, United States
Raffi Miller, DMD
Associate Program Director
NYU Langone- Holyoke Health Center
Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States
Raffi Miller, DMD
Associate Program Director
NYU Langone- Holyoke Health Center
Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States
Daniel J. Kane, DMD, MA
Program Director
NYU Langone Hospitals
Brooklyn, New York, United States
Purpose: The purpose of this study is to compare treatment outcomes of primary tooth pulpotomies completed in a hospital setting versus dental office environment.
Methods: A retrospective chart review of 106 primary teeth in children ages 2-8 was conducted. Each tooth was categorized into groups based on treatment method and environment (in-office versus in-hospital). Data collection was completed for children treated between 01/01/2013 and 12/31/2018 that presented for a 2-year clinical and/ or radiographic follow-up. All data was analyzed using a chi-square test.
Results: In this study, pulpotomies completed in-hospital had higher rates of failure compared to in-office. Treatment was found to be successful or acceptable in 76.4% of patients treated in-office versus 60.8% in-hospital, and unacceptable in 23.6% of patients in-office versus 39.2% in-hospital. Chi-square analysis yielded a p-value of < 0.001, suggesting that this finding was significant.
Conclusions: Though success rates of dental treatment are generally higher for teeth treated in the hospital compared to in-office, certain factors may lead to success rates differing in both treatment environments. Therefore, in clinical practice, proper case selection, provider training, material selection, and determination of pulpal status prior to performing pulpotomy therapy is key.