Association of Vital Pulp Therapy Outcomes with Tooth Type, Arch Location, Treatment Type, and Number of Surfaces Destroyed in Deciduous Teeth: A Retrospective Study

Abstract

There is a paucity of information concerning vital pulp treatment outcomes in the undergraduate teaching setting. This study aimed to determine which type of deciduous molar, arch location, type of vital pulp therapy, and the number of carious surfaces involved had a better prognosis when carried out by undergraduate dental students. The method used was the review of clinical records of 590 patients with 600 deciduous molars, that visited the outpatient undergraduate dental clinics for vital pulp therapy. Statistical analysis used to determine the associations of tooth type, arch location, treatment type, and the number of carious surfaces involved in successful outcomes was logistic regression analysis with significance set at p < 0.05. According to the regression analysis model results, there was a significant association based on tooth type (p < 0.05) and arch location (p = 0.003). In addition, there was a significant association based on the type of treatment performed (p = 0.036). However, there was no significant association in success rates based on the number of carious surfaces involved (p = 0.873). In conclusion, second deciduous molars and maxillary deciduous molars had a better overall prognosis, and indirect pulp therapy was revealed to be more highly associated with successful treatment outcomes in comparison to ferric sulfate pulpotomy in our setting.

Evaluation of four vital pulp therapies for primary molars using a dual-cured tricalcium silicate (TheraCal PT): one-year results of a non-randomized clinical trial

“…Similarly, Franzon et al [8] found an insignificantly lower success rate of IPT when proximal surfaces were involved compared to occlusal cavities. Others demonstrated no association between caries location and the success of IPT [36,52,53]. Disagreements with our results could be related to variations in the study design in terms of caries depth and methods of assessment.…”

“…Our results also showed that the absence of provoked pain and SDMs were associated with lower odds of failure, which were consistent with other studies assessing IPT and pulpotomy in primary teeth [36,37,54,55]. SDMs have a larger pulp chamber compared to first deciduous molars (FDMs); thus, more progenitor cells would be available.…”

“…Disagreements with our results could be related to variations in the study design in terms of caries depth and methods of assessment. For instance, Maqbool et al [36] included teeth with caries extending to the inner half of dentin and only conducted clinical evaluations.…”

Potential factors affecting the success rate of indirect pulp therapy in primary molars with deep caries: a retrospective study

“…These uncooperative patients usually underwent treatment under general anesthesia or sedation. There were inconsistencies among studies concerning arch type and tooth type [16,24,36]. Maqbool found that maxillary deciduous molars and second deciduous molars had a better overall outcome at a 12-month follow-up after vital pulp therapy.…”

“…However, younger patients may have more resilient pulp tissues, increasing the likelihood of success. The anatomical morphology of teeth with different dental arches and tooth types varies, possibly resulting in varying degrees of dental pulp involvement by caries and potentially impacting the treatment outcome [16]. The materials used for sealing the cavity after excavation play a role in the success of IPT.…”