Using A New Endodontic Tooth Model as an Alternative in Clinical Education Course During the Covid-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Background The COVID-19 pandemic massively impacts endodontic teaching and a dramatically reduced number of patients is registered in clinical courses. This could be countered with suitable training aids. Based on treatment errors made by students in the last five years of endodontic courses at RWTH Aachen University (Germany), a new artificial root canal treatment model (DRSK RCT) was developed. The model was aimed to be radiopaque and to simulate the tactile feel during instrumentation in a realistic manner. Unlike already existing 3D-printed tooth replicas, the RCT has anatomical root canals with a narrow lumen with its width matching an ISO size 6 endodontic file. Methodology 35 fourth-year students and seven dental demonstrators performed endodontic treatments on both the DRSK RCT and extracted teeth. Students and demonstrators answered a questionnaire on a scale ranging from 1 to 7 (poor to high) for different items (part 1). After the first study, changes in the materials and root canal anatomy were applied to the model. Then, the whole study was repeated and evaluated (part 2). Finally, it was evaluated whether the models could replace patient treatment during the Covid-19 pandemic. Results Ratings by students and dental instructors (5.1 ± 0.4 and 5.3 ± 1.5 [mean ± SD], respectively) in the first study increased after modifications of the DRSK RCT (5.5 ± 0.5 and 6.2 ± 0.8, respectively). Radiographs of the models were excellently assessable. The properties of the DRSK RCT were found to be realistic, thus allowing students to perform a satisfactory simulation of root canal treatment and being rated sufficient in substituting patient treatment during COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion The analysis suggests that the DRSK RCT has the ability to improve endodontic technique and education. Visible root canals enable students to observe the treatment process. All steps of a regular root canal treatment can be simulated. Further studies are needed to investigate the outcome of treating the first patient after practicing on the DRSK RCT.

3D-Printed Teeth in Endodontics: Why, How, Problems and Future—A Narrative Review

“…(1) Difficult to collect: Increasing challenges in sourcing sufficient suitable natural teeth, probably as a result of improvement in health standards; it is time-consuming and requires a large number of teeth (wisdom teeth, teeth with highly complex root canal morphology and with previous root canal treatment are not acceptable, and natural teeth must present complete root development, an intact crown and intact roots) [19,23,24,27,30,35,37]. Nowadays, the biobank is considered a primary resource for the development of precision medicine.…”

“…Three-dimensional-printed teeth have other advantages in pre-clinical courses such as presenting canal anatomy difficulty in a progressive way [2,19]; students can practice the procedures as many times as they want and even compare different protocols, which is also true for ex vivo studies [2,19,35]. It seems logical that techniques well covered in pre-clinical course are performed more easily and cause less stress among the students when treating patients for the first time [16].…”

“…In recent years, different factory-manufactured models have been introduced in the market, which are realistic and standardized. However, their costs are high, there is a limited selection of tooth types, the delivery times must be considered with a dependency on a manufacturer and the differences between the manufacturing process and the material used by each commercial brand are widely different [23,26,31,35].…”