Impact of quality of root canal fillings and coronal restorations on the prevalence of apical periodontitis in an adult Saudi subpopulation

Abstract

Objectives

This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of apical periodontitis among healthy Saudi adult patients and to examine the impact of root canal filling quality and coronal restoration quality on periradicular health.

Methods

We used periapical radiographs for this study and categorized the teeth as either diseased or healthy based on the periapical index scores. Two pre-calibrated examiners independently evaluated the radiographs. Any uncertain situation was discussed with another senior examiner. Data were statistically analyzed by applying the Chi-square test or Fisher exact test at a 5% (P < .05) level of significance using IBM SPSS 29.0 software (IBM Corp, Armonk, NY).

Results

The overall prevalence of apical periodontitis in endodontically treated teeth was 29.04%. 47.79% of teeth had adequate endodontic treatments. The success rate for teeth with adequate endodontic treatment was significantly higher at 96%, compared to a 48% success rate in teeth with inadequate endodontic treatment (P < .001). Additionally, 70.1% of the teeth had adequate coronal restorations. Teeth with adequate coronal restorations showed a significantly higher success rate at 78.33% compared to the 53.7% success rate of teeth with inadequate coronal restorations (P < .001).

Conclusions

The quality of endodontic treatment determines the outcome. Therefore, improvements in root canal treatment procedures are advisable in general and specialist dental practices to enhance periradicular health. The coronal restoration is also an essential component of the overall treatment. The optimal treatment outcome can be achieved with the adequate quality of both endodontic treatment and coronal restoration.