The effect of operator experience on complications in endodontic treatments: A retrospective evaluation

Purpose: The objective of this study is to investigate the distribution of complications arising during root canal treatments performed by undergraduate and postgraduate students, and to evaluate the impact of experience level on the occurrence of these complications.
Methods: The present retrospective study evaluated endodontic treatments performed by third-, fourth- and fifth-year dental students, as well as postgraduate students at the beginning of their specialty training and those in their first, second, and third years of training. A total of 1180 root canal treatments performed due to apical periodontitis were subjected to analysis. The complications were classified into the following categories: underfilling, overfilling, inadequate shaping, ledge formation, presence of fractured instruments, apical transportation, and perforation. The collected data were then subjected to analysis using IBM SPSS version 29, and differences between the groups were assessed through the implementation of the Chi-square test (p<0.05).
Results: A total of 1180 cases were examined, and the most prevalent complications were identified as underfilling (16.9%), overfilling (10.8%), and inadequate shaping (10.4%). A statistically significant discrepancy was identified in the distribution of complications among undergraduate and postgraduate students (p<0.001). Underfilling (22.8% vs. 10.9%), inadequate shaping (14.8% vs. 5.9%), and ledge formation (5.5% vs. 0.7%) were more frequently observed in undergraduate students, whereas the incidence of overfilling was higher among postgraduate students (12.9% vs. 8.7%, p=0.018).
Conclusion: The present study demonstrates that the level of experience significantly affects the incidence of complications in root canal treatment. Specifically, complications such as underfilling, inadequate shaping, and ledge formation were more frequently encountered in undergraduate students, whereas postgraduate students exhibited higher rates of overfilling. The present findings underscore the imperative for more comprehensive instruction in endodontic techniques.

Keywords: Endodontic complication, operator experience, postgraduate education, root canal treat-ment.