Abstract
PURPOSE: To describe and compare patient and tooth characteristics determined prior to treatment among those receiving root canal treatment (RCT) from general dentists (GD) versus endodontists within the National Dental Practice-Based Research (PBRN) Network. METHODS: This National Dental PBRN study involved 153 practitioners (104 GDs and 49 endodontists) who used a consecutive enrollment strategy to enroll patients. Practitioners recorded details about pre-operative tooth characteristics. Prior to RCT, patients provided data about their socio-demographic, medication use, temporomandibular disorder (TMD), and psycho-social characteristics. We describe the overall prevalence of these characteristics and compare them by provider type. RESULTS: 1,723 patients were enrolled; 788 by GDs and 935 by endodontists. Endodontists treated higher proportions of female, non-Hispanic white, better-educated patients, patients from the Midwest and Southwest regions, and molar teeth compared to GDs. GDs saw a higher proportion of patients from the Northeast region and whose teeth had a probing depth of 5 mm or more. All of these characteristics were independently and significantly (at p <.05) associated with provider type. Endodontists were more likely than GDs to see patients with TMD symptoms in bivariate comparisons, but their patient groups were similar with regard to treatment outcome expectation, dental fear, depression, and anxiety. CONCLUSION: Significant differences exist between endodontists and GDs in patient demographics, tooth characteristics, and treatment patterns, with endodontists treating more molars, female, non-Hispanic white, and educated patients, while GDs manage more cases involving antibiotics use and teeth with deep probing depths, highlighting variations in referral patterns and treatment accessibility.