FDI chairside guide proposes a prevention-focused endodontic care strategy
At the ADA FDI World Dental Congress in San Francisco, USA, FDI released the Endodontic care strategy in general dental practice chairside guide, which provides a strategy for endodontic treatment in the general dental practice. Emphasizing the importance of prevention, early intervention and patient-centred care to achieve optimal outcomes, it gives an overview of the key considerations for general dentists when faced with endodontic disease. The guide also provides easy-to-use tools for reaching an endodontic diagnosis and selecting the appropriate treatment.
Endodontic care treats the damage done to the blood vessels, nerves, and tissues in and around the tooth. This damage is often caused by untreated dental caries, which affects a staggering 2.4 billion people worldwide. FDI’s Endodontics in General Practice initiative, supported by Dentsply Sirona, defines the scale of the global burden of endodontic disease and proposes patient-centered solutions to improve endodontic health. Earlier this year, FDI released its first white paper on endodontic care, providing an important resource for dentists, national dental associations (NDAs), and other oral health actors.
FDI calls for endodontic care to address a broader set of patient-centred outcomes, including teeth retention and impact on overall health, rather than focusing purely on the roots of the tooth. Patients are often concerned with eliminating pain and keeping the affected tooth healthy and strong over the long term. Considering the patient’s perspective in the provision of endodontic care has significant implications for existing treatment guidelines.
"A comprehensive approach to endodontic care puts the patient first. We need to shift away from treatment outcomes that focus solely on technical goals and clinical symptoms after treatment and take a closer look at how we can deliver better care to our patients."
Endodontics (in Greek, ‘endo’ means ‘inside’ and ‘odont’ means ‘tooth’) is the branch of dentistry concerning the conservation and treatment of dental pulp and tissues surrounding the roots of the tooth.
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The Endodontics in General Practice project focuses on the soft inner tissue of the teeth in daily dental practice and guides general dentists on the provision of optimal endodontic care.
