Neslihan Yılmaz Çırakoğlu

ObjectivesDental anxiety (dental phobia) is a common psychological condition that significantly limits individuals’ access to oral and dental health services. This study aims to examine the demographic, psychological, and environmental determinants of dental phobia and to highlight its clinical significance.Material and MethodsData were gathered using a self-administered questionnaire developed by the researchers, consisting of two sections. The first section included questions regarding participants’ sociodemographic characteristics, such as age, sex, and educational level. The second section consisted of multiple-choice questions designed to assess participants’ levels of dental anxiety by evaluating their anxiety toward different dental procedures. The study sample consisted of 581 patients, including 222 males and 359 females. The Mann–Whitney U test was used to compare two independent groups, while the Kruskal–Wallis test was applied for comparisons involving three or more groups.ResultsDental anxiety was found to be higher among females and individuals with lower levels of education. Pre-appointment anxiety, avoidance behavior, physiological symptoms, and negative environmental exposures emerged as the strongest predictors of fear. Adverse dental experiences during childhood may contribute to the development of dental anxiety later in life. Dental anxiety levels increased as instrument-related discomfort increased. Although dentist-related factors (trust, explanation, and an empathetic approach) had a statistically significant effect on fear, their overall impact was relatively limited.ConclusionThe findings emphasize the importance of anxiety-reducing strategies, the prevention of negative childhood experiences, and the strengthening of dentist–patient communication in the management of dental phobia.

Aims: The aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate the long-term success rate of apical resection procedures and to explore factors potentially associated with treatment outcomes under routine clinical conditions. Methods: Clinical records of patients who underwent apical resection at a single academic center between January 2015 and January 2025 were retrospectively reviewed. Demographic variables, tooth characteristics, root-end filling materials, and operator type were recorded. Treatment outcome was assessed based on the absence of clinical symptoms and radiographic reduction in periapical lesion size. Preoperative and follow-up periapical radiographs were calibrated and analyzed using ImageJ software. Statistical analyses included chi-square, Fisher’s exact, and Mann–Whitney U tests, and variables showing potential associations were further explored. Results: A total of 357 apical resection cases were included, with a mean follow-up period of 72 months (range: 18–120 months). Successful healing was observed in the majority of cases. Differences in outcomes were observed according to root-end filling material and operator type, whereas no apparent associations were noted with patient sex, age, or jaw location. Conclusion: Within the limitations of this retrospective study, apical resection demonstrated a satisfactory long-term outcome under routine clinical conditions. Treatment outcomes appeared to be influenced by procedural and operator-related factors, underscoring the importance of appropriate material selection and surgical expertise in apical surgery.

Artificial intelligence–based large language models (LLMs) are increasingly being used across multiple disciplines. In healthcare, as well as in educ

Objective: The aim of this study is to measure the knowledge level of materials and equipment for endodontics and pedodontics, as well as sterilization and disinfection procedures, of dental assistants in dental institutions and intern oral and dental health technician students studying at college. Methods: Four hundred ninety-eight people, including dental assistants working in public, private and university institutions, between the ages of 18-65, and students of the Oral and Dental Health Technician School of Universities, participated in the study. A questionnaire was applied to the participants. With the help of the survey consisting of different questions, the participants' knowledge levels about pedodontic and endodontic materials and sterilization procedures were measured. Results: The knowledge level of dental assistants about dental materials was found to be low in 5.2% of the participants, medium in 32.5% of the participants, and high in 62.3% of the participants. There isn’t any significant difference between the assistants' knowledge level and their gender (p=0.23), age group (p=0.09), educational status (p=0.41), professional experience (p=0.51), certification (p=0.39), and the institution that they work for (p=0.24). Conclusion: It was found that dental assistants have a lack of knowledge in this subject. It is thought that planning and perform regular training education programmes in terms of both acquiring new information and repeating existing information can be effective for eliminating the deficiencies of dental assistants.

Aim: To determine the current status and trend of endodontic research in Türkiye.Materials and Methods: A comprehensive literature survey was conducted using the Clarivate search engine. Keyword selection was as follows: “Endodontics” and “Türkiye”. All publications until May 2022 were included. The search was restricted to endodontics. Title, first author, country/institute, journal name, publication year, citation, abstracts, and keywords were recorded. VOSviewer version 1.6.10 software was used to map the bibliometric network of the exported data that has an automatic term identification algorithm.Results: A total of 672 articles between 1985-2022 years were included. The scientific contribution rate of Türkiye was found 4.12% in the field of Endodontology. The highest number of publications is in the category of ‘Dentistry Oral Surgery Medicine’ with 588 articles and 384 (73%) published by Journal of Endodontics.Conclusion: This bibliometric analysis highlights Türkiye’s contribution to the field of Endodontology. Research articles have been contributed by various authors and institutions.

Akademisyen Yayınevi yöneticileri, yaklaşık 30 yıllık yayın tecrübesini, kendi tüzel kişiliklerine aktararak uzun zamandan beri, ticarî faaliyetlerini sürdürmektedir. Anılan süre içinde, başta sağlık ve sosyal bilimler, kültürel ve sanatsal konular dahil 2000’i aşkın yayımlamanın gururu içindedir. Uluslararası yayınevi olmanın alt yapısını tamamlayan Akademisyen, Türkçe ve yabancı dillerde yayın yapmanın yanında, küresel bir marka yaratmanın peşindedir. Bilimsel ve düşünsel çalışmaların kalıcı belgeleri sayılan kitaplar, bilgi kayıt ortamı olarak yüzlerce yılın tanıklarıdır. Matbaanın icadıyla varoluşunu sağlam temellere oturtan kitabın geleceği, her ne kadar yeni buluşların yörüngesine taşınmış olsa da, daha uzun süre hayatımızda yer edineceği muhakkaktır.

Objectives: Nowadays, YouTube is widely used to find information on any subject. The aim of this study was to research the quality and content of the most relevant YouTube™ videos about devital bleaching. Materials and Methods: “Internal bleaching” was determined as the searching term after consulting with “Google Trends” application, and the search on YouTube was conducted on 25th of January 2022 without using any filters. Videos have been evaluated and scored for usefulness and Global Quality Score (GQS). For statistical analysis, Kruskal-Wallis test, Pearson test and Pearson Chi-Square were performed.Results: 100 videos were evaluated, 35% of which met the inclusion‐exclusion criteria. Most of the video uploaders were dental professionals (56.9%). Videos had a generally moderate usefulness score (mean±SD: 3,37 ± 2,09). According to the ownership, there was no difference between the median overall usefulness scores (p=0.611). There is a statistically significant positive correlation between video length and overall usefulness score (p<0.001). Similarly, there is a statistically significant positive correlation between the number of likes and the overall usefulness score (p=0.002). The median viewing rate value of 'moderate' videos was significantly lower than 'poor' and 'good' videos (p=0.048).Conclusions: Devital bleaching-related information on YouTube™ could not be considered entirely dependable. Patients should be selective to obtain information from reliable sources.

Dens invaginatus is a progressive abnormality resulting from invagination of the crown or root before calcification. This case report presents nonsurgical endodontic treatment and nine-year follow-up results of a right maxillary canine tooth with type II dens invaginatus. A 40-year-old female patient was referred to the clinic for treatment of her maxillary right canine tooth. The invagination was managed on a two-visit appointment. On the first visit, the invagination area, which was disconnected, was completely removed from the root canal. The invagination area was instrumented, and the root canal was dressed with calcium hydroxide. At the second appointment, apexification was done using mineral trioxide aggregate compacted to the apical 3mm. Finally, the invaginated area and the root canal were obturated with a warm vertical compaction technique. At a nine-year follow-up, the invaginated tooth was asymptomatic, and the periradicular lesion showed satisfactory healing radiographically.

Introduction The purpose of this research is to assess the wearing of the rotary file system (Protaper Next) and reciprocating file systems (Reciproc Blue and WaveOne Gold) at different lengths using a novel technique after in vivo clinical use. Materials and Methods Twelve different unused samples from each brand were accepted as reference values. For three different brands, the diameters of the files were measured by taking 12 samples used once, 12 samples used twice, and 12 samples used three times. Images were taken with a USB Micron Microscope, and file diameters were measured by determining limit values with Autocad. Result Reciproc Blue system was the most worn at apical 1 mm, and WaveOne Gold system was the most worn at apical 3 mm. PTN system exhibited the least wearing at any length. Moreover, less wearing was observed in the rotation motion than in the reciprocating motion. Conclusion In clinical practice, for the guttapercha to be fully adapted to the apical construction prepared according to the determined WL, the file should not undergo any wearing and volume reduction. Wearing—especially in the apical parts of the file—causes less preparation, and this situation could lead to apically obturation failure.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare patient admissions, treatment needs, and treatments in our hospital before and after the Covid-19 pandemic. Methods: The patients who presented to Karabük Oral Dental Health Training and Research Hospital between March 2019 and March 2021 were retrospectively evaluated. The data obtained were used to compare the 1-year course after the Covid-19 pandemic and the 1-year course before the Covid-19 pandemic. In this 2-year period, the number of hospital registrations, distribution of patients by gender, age data, type, and the number of procedures performed were obtained from the software system used in the hospital. Results: The average number of patients in 1 year before the pandemic is approximately 3.5 times in the next 1 year. When the number of patients applying was evaluated in terms of gender, it is seen that the number of male patients decreased more than women during the pandemic period. It has been observed that there is a dramatic decrease in the pandemic period in all treatments. Conclusion: With the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been a serious decrease in the number of patients. However, with the ongoing treatment needs and normalization processes of the patients, necessary precautions were taken and the treatment of the patients continued.