Reasons for patients opting out from root canal treatment and preferring extraction in a prospective study

Abstract

Background: Unfortunately, endodontic care has a bad reputation. To effectively address the problem, it is vital to identify the elements that cause patients' discomfort and so prevent them from participating in RCT. Aim and Objectives: The goal of this study is to assess the factors that lead people from southern India to forego root canal treatment (RCT) in favor of tooth extraction. Methodology: 500 patients who sought therapy for irreversible pulpitis at the department of conservative dentistry and endodontics and ultimately opted for extraction were analyzed. Patients were contacted, and their completed surveys were gathered. To conduct statistical analysis, the recorded explanations were put into SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences). Frequency distribution tests were performed on the data. Results: Twenty percentage of patients in the study reported that they did not want to undergo RCT because they believed it would be ineffective, while 15% cited the high cost of RCT and a crown as a deterrent. Twenty-five percentage of respondents said they needed pain relief immediately but were unconcerned about tooth loss. Conclusion: Patient misconceptions about the efficacy of RCTs were a major factor in their decision to forego participation in these studies in favor of extraction.