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| 2010-22 |
| 22-1 |
ISSN (Print) 1013-9052
EISSN 1658-3558
The Saudi Dental Journal,
P.O. Box 52500,
Riyadh 11563,
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
P.O. Box 52500,
Riyadh 11563,
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
| Tel. |
966-1-467-7328 |
| Fax. |
933-1-467-7308 / 966-1-467-7534 |
| Email |
saudidj@ksu.edu.sa |
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Factors influencing prosthodontic decision-making among general dentists
Ridwaan Omar*, BSc, BDS, LDS RCS, MSc, FRACDS, FDS RCSEd
Variations in clinical decision-making may, in part, be due to dentist-related factors. The aim of this study was to examine the role of dentist-related factors in the process of decision-making in a prosthodontic context, by evaluating the importance that general dentists attach to a series of listed criteria in typical clinical settings. A questionnaire was distributed to 228 dentists, of whom 137 completed it, giving a response rate of 60%. Four clinical categories, or Paper Patient Cases (PPC), representing choices between treatment options, were defined: (1) crown or plastic restoration, (2) fixed or removable partial denture, (3) fixed partial denture or single tooth implant restoration, (4) the choice to replace or not to replace a single missing posterior tooth. A visual analogue scale (VAS) was used to grade responses. There were generally large variations in the individual responses to various items, but smaller variations among genders and working sectors. Greatest importance was given to "prognosis" and "aesthetics of final result" across all situations, and less importance to "time for treatment" and "number of visits". In factor analysis, items in each PPC could be reduced to between 3 and 5 principal component factors, which explained between 59% and 70% of the variances. The reduced factors broadly encompassed 'clinical dental status', 'time', 'patient influence', 'outcome', 'general health', and 'non-dental treatment barriers'. While some common explanations could be seen across some of the PPCs, there were also factors which were unique to a given PPC, suggesting that decision-making in prosthodontics could be regarded as a multi-dimensional process involving a wider range of factors than those included here.
Saudi Dental Journal 2003;15(2):62-71.
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