Brief Communication A Retrospective Evaluation of a Program's Use of Indirect Pulp Therapy for Primary Molars.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this retrospective study was to assess how procedural code trends reflect the adoption of evidence-based best-clinical-practice guidelines in a hospital-based pediatric dental residency program. METHODS: Data on frequency of indirect pulp therapy (IPT) and primary pulpotomy (P) utilization were assessed from 2008 to 2020. RESULTS: The rate of procedural change between IPT and P significantly differed (P<0.001) over 12 years. The total procedural frequency of IPT overcame P around the years 2014 to 2015. CONCLUSIONS: From 2008 to 2020, indirect pulp therapy became the vital pulp therapy of choice in a hospital-based pediatric dental residency program. This trend likely reflects guidelines from major publications on the subject matter and changing philosophies on vital pulp therapy at this hospital-based residency program. Using available data (in this case, procedural codes), dental education programs can identify shifts in care and teaching trends on capstone procedures like vital pulpotomy.