KNOWLEDGE, AWARENESS AND PRACTICE ON VARIOUS IRRIGANTS USED IN THIRD MOLAR SURGERY AMONG DENTISTS- A QUESTIONNAIRE SURVEY

PURPOSE: Tooth impaction may be a pathological situation where a tooth fails to achieve its normal functional position. The impaction rate is higher for third molars in comparison with other teeth. Irrigants are a vital component of the surgical procedure as it helps dissipate the heat generated by the bur during the minor surgical procedures. It in turn helps in the conservation of vital bone preventing bone necrosis. Irrigants used in oral and maxillofacial surgery are many. But its awareness among general dentists is depleting with time. Newer developments in the field of irrigation for third molar surgery have revolutionized the one look and functionality of irrigants. This study aims to assess the knowledge, awareness and practice of dentists regarding various irrigants used in third molar surgery. MATERIALS AND METHORDS: A cross sectional, digital questionnaire-based study was conducted among 382 dental professionals using 10 closed ended relevant questions. The collected data were consolidated and statistically analyzed using IBM SPSS Version 20. RESULTS: The study revealed that 61.80% of participants were unaware of the surgical benefits of using irrigants in third molar surgeries out of which 73.26% were not aware of irrigants other than normal saline. 67.2% of participants don't use irrigants during their daily dental practice. 63.53% of the participants have not realized the role of irrigants on post-operative complications. More than half the total participants accounting for 66.63% have knowledge on newer irrigants such as propolis and ozonated water and felt that they did not have sufficient knowledge concerning irrigants used in oral surgery. CONCLUSION: This study concludes that more than 60% prospective dental professionals lack the knowledge about various irrigants used in third molar surgeries. This study hopes to shed light to theimportance of using irrigants for third molar surgeries. This study over all establishes the importance to improve the level of competency and knowledge of dental professionals to the newer developed irrigants for surgical procedures.