Date of Award
Spring 2016
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Department
Dentistry
First Advisor
Bhagavatula, Pradeep
Second Advisor
Stover, Sheila
Third Advisor
Hashimoto, Lance
Abstract
Introduction: The objective of this study was to compare the outcomes of initial non-surgical root canal therapy (NSRCT) for different tooth types provided by both endodontists and other providers. Methods: Using an insurance company database, 487,476 initial NSRCT procedures were followed from the time of treatment to the presence of an untoward event indicated by Current Dental Terminology (CDT) codes for retreatment, apical surgery, or extraction. Population demographics were computed for provider type and tooth location. Kaplan-Meier survival estimates were calculated for 1, 5, and 10 years. Hazard ratios for provider type and tooth location were calculated using the Cox proportional hazards model. Analyses were performed using SAS 9.4 (Cary, NC). Results: The survival of all teeth collectively was 98% at 1 year, 92% at 5 years, and 86% at 10 years. Significant differences in survival based on provider type were noted for molars at 5 years, and for all tooth types at 10 years. The greatest difference discovered was a 5% higher survival rate at 10 years for molars treated by endodontists. This was further evidenced by a hazard ratio of 1.394 when comparing other provider’s success to endodontists within this ten-year molar group. Conclusions: These findings show that survival rates of endodontically teeth is high at ten years post treatment regardless of provider type. Molars treated by endodontists after 10 years have significantly higher survival rates than molars treated by non-endodontists.