A QUESTIONNAIRE-BASED SURVEY ASSESSMENT OF DENTISTS FOR REPAIR VERSUS REPLACEMENT OF DEFECTIVE RESTORATIONS

Abstract

Objective: To determine the practice of dentists for management of defective restorations. This cross-sectional survey was conducted on 124 qualified dentists who were either government employees or private practitioners, house officers, post graduate residents and fellows. Undergraduate dental students, dental technicians and dental assistants were excluded from the study. The questionnaire contained all close ended questions and was distributed through emails and whatsapp.

Methodology: The practice of managing defective restorations was compared among various level of experiences using chi-square test. The mean age was 33.95±7.65 years. The males were 79(63.71%) and females were 45(36.29%). Of total 77(62.10%) dentists frequently repair single tooth defective restorations. For 91(73.39%) dentists, the outcome of repaired restoration was satisfactory.

Results: The common reasons for repair of defective restoration was to ‘prolong life of restoration’ (n=54, 43.55%) and conservation (n=38, 30.65%). Most common reason for defective amalgam restoration was ‘Tooth Fracture’ (n=54, 43.55%) and for composite was ‘Secondary Caries’ (n=42, 33.87%). Statistically significant association was found between restorations placed and years of experience (p=0.001). Dentists with more experience were repairing more single tooth restorations as compared to less experienced statistically (p<0.001). In conclusion, more than 62% dentists repair defective restorations. Amalgam restoration is repaired mainly due to tooth fracture and composite due to secondary caries. Experiences of dentists affect their practice of managing defective restorations.