Reframing perceptions in operative dentistry relating evidence-based dentistry and clinical decision making: a cross-sectional study among Jordanian dentists

Background: The aim of the current study was to investigate current dental practice in operative dentistry in Jordan, and the relationship between evidence-based dentistry in caries research and decision making in clinical practice in operative dentistry. Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted through a survey of dentists in Jordan. The survey aimed to explore the degree of knowledge and practice of evidence-based dentistry in caries research the dentists possess regarding clinical decision making in operative dentistry. The sample size was composed of (5811) dentists whom registered in Jordan Dental Association database. Descriptive statistics were generated and Chi-square test was used to examine associations between the different variables and the significance level was set at P < 0.05. Results: 4000 responses were collected from the web-survey, response rate (68.83%). Nearly half of the surveyed dentists focus on the chief complaint of their patients (n = 2032, 50.8%) rather than doing full mouth assessment. Nearly two-thirds of dentists (n = 2608, 65.2%) treat lesions confined to enamel with operative treatment. Half of dentists use operative treatment when asked about the routine management of radiographically detected proximal caries confined to enamel. When treating incipient lesions, the majority (n = 3220, 80.5%) use preventive treatment. Three-quarters of dentists (n = 2992, 74.8%) treat deep dentinal caries by removing just the soft infected carious dentin, and treated old failed restorations with replacement. Conclusion: In operative dentistry, the evidence-based research is not implemented clinically. To optimize relationship between evidence-based dentistry and clinical decision-making, dental curriculum has to be updated and modified constantly.