Perceived effectiveness about endodontic practice among private general dental practitioners in Riyadh city, Saudi Arabia

BACKGROUND: Application of newer techniques in endodontics improves the prognosis and reduces the time to operate patients; hence, the present study was conducted to determine the characteristics of endodontic practice and to compare these characteristics between General Dental Practitioners (GDPs) and endodontists with regards to their years of experience in Riyadh city, Saudi Arabia. MATERIALS AND METHOD: A cross-sectional study was conducted among GDPs and endodontists working in private sector in Riyadh. Study subjects were chosen from 5 areas of Riyadh by stratified random sampling. A structured, pretested, closed-ended, and self-administered questionnaire consisting of 36 items was employed. Questionnaire identified different aspects of endodontic practice among participants. Information related to their behavior and perceived effectiveness, and demographic data were also collected. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: A total of 259 practitioners participated in the present study. The mean behavior and perceived effectiveness scores were 5.73 (71.63%) and 1.16 (58%), respectively. A total of 64 respondents (24.7%) used magnification, while 167 (64.5%) employed digital radiography/cone-beam computed tomography. Rotary instruments were employed by 170 participants (65.64%) and adjunctive activator during irrigation was utilized by 50 (19.30%) of respondents. A majority of 217 respondents (83.80%) reported that they need further training. Correlation analysis revealed that gender was significantly associated with perceived effectiveness (r = 0.136, P = 0.029). CONCLUSIONS: Behavior and perceived effectiveness of practitioners is far from satisfactory and a majority of practitioners identified the need for further training. There was a statistically significant correlation between gender and perceived effectiveness.