SP-32 Root Canal Treatment Outcomes: The Human Side
CE Hours: 0.75
Description: Endodontists necessarily focus on the procedural aspects of root canal treatment, from diagnosis to technique and recall. However, we must also understand the patient’s perspective, and we must know ourselves. Endodontic outcomes, from the presenter’s published systematic reviews, amongst other studies, will be discussed from patients’ and doctors’ points of view. This presentation will explore data on patient’s perceptions. What do patients know about root canal treatment, and why does this matter? What level of anxiety can be expected, and how can it be reduced? Pain, what should be expected, the intensity, the duration, and management? How does root canal treatment impact quality of life? How much does tooth retention and a smile matter? Differences between institutional outcome studies and real-world community endodontics will be explained. The positive economic impact of root canal treatment on the patient will be enumerated. Data on the critical impact of root canal treatment to the elderly and the vulnerable will be summarized. Ways to identify and understand vulnerable young adults will be explained. We dentists may assume that we are completely objective dispassionate scientific professionals implementing evidence-based practice, but the reality is that we also carry all the complex attributes of humanity. Just like patients, our cognitions, knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors are shaped by all of our interactions with the wider world. These will be elucidated, and key differences between endodontists and generalists will be documented. This presentation is both a looking glass, and a celebration, of the conduct and impact root canal treatment.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe endodontic outcomes as measured by data from clinical success and survival instruments, patient-centered instruments, and dentists’ perceptions.
- List the outcome metrics that have the highest impact on patients, and comprehensively evaluate a variety of outcome metrics.
- Discuss the impact of dentists’ cognitions, attitudes and behaviors on treatment outcomes.
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Shane N. White, B.Dent.Sc., M.S., M.A., Ph.D.
Shane White is a Professor at the UCLA School of Dentistry. He received his dental training from Trinity College Dublin, spent several years in general practice and part-time teaching in Dublin, received a master's degree in Oral Biology and Certificates in Prosthodontics and Endodontics from UCLA, and a PhD in Craniofacial Biology from USC.
He enjoys teaching in D.D.S. and endodontic residency programs and mentoring student researchers. His research interests include dental biological materials, as well as in patient-centered endodontics and dental outcomes – focusing on the human side. He has won several major research awards, held a handful of National Institutes of Health grants and authored over 130 research papers He has been serially listed in the Stanford University Study as being among the top 2% of scientists worldwide. He has given approximately 400 invited scholarly lectures around the world.
He served as Chair, University of California Academic Senate, and as Faculty Representative to the University of California Board of Regents, being one of the 3 principal leaders of the University of California in 2016-18. He has a notable record of Senate and departmental service at UCLA, where he served as Chair of the UCLA Division of the Academic Senate in 2020-21, being in office throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic from 2019-23. Within the School of Dentistry, he has chaired the Section of Endodontics, the school’s Curriculum Committee and both of its faculty advancement committees. As a professor, and in all of his servant-leadership positions, he has striven to promote access, diversity, equity, inclusion, transparency, and accountability.
He surfs whenever he can.
Disclosure(s): No financial relationships to disclose