The incidence of nickel-titanium endodontic hand file fractures: A 7-year retrospective study in a tertiary care hospital

AIM: The present retrospective cross-sectional study aims to evaluate the incidence and factors associated with nickel-titanium hand file fractures in root canal-treated teeth in a tertiary care hospital of western India. METHODOLOGY: The diagnostic records of intraoral periapical (IOPA) radiographs were analyzed to check for file fractures in the root canal-treated teeth. As a part of standardized departmental protocol, Hand ProTaper Universal file system (Dentsply, India) was used for chemomechanical preparation for root canal treatment. The file fractures were analyzed with reference to age group, type of teeth, curvature of the canal, site of file fracture in the canal, length of file fracture, level of file fracture, distance of the file fracture from the apex, and obturation status of the file-fractured tooth. Chi-square test was applied to assess the significance difference between the tested groups. RESULTS: A total of 19,810 IOPA X-rays were screened and 2728 root canal-treated teeth were found and of these 2728 cases, 109 file-fractured teeth were observed. CONCLUSION: The total incidence of file fractures was 3.9/100 root canal-treated cases, and mandibular molars with severely curved canals (>25°) had shown the maximum incidence of file fractures.