Comparing teaching of amalgam and direct posterior composite restorations to undergraduates: A cross-sectional study among faculties from the Department of Conservative Dentistry & Endodontics in Kerala, India

Abstract

Abstract Background: Posterior composites are widely used in dental practice today. But whether the undergraduate dental curriculum equip the students with the knowledge and skills in posterior composite placement is questionable. Further, amalgam seems to be an ideal choice of restoration by a few dental professionals. Thus this study aims to compare the theoretical, pre-clinical, and clinical curricular aspects of amalgam and direct posterior restoration from the perspective of dental teaching faculty. Materials and Methods: This observational cross-sectional study was conducted across all dental colleges in Kerala. A questionnaire designed through google forms were sent to 100 dental teaching faculty, selected by random sampling. The responses were entered in Microsoft excel and analysed using Statistical Product and Service Solution (SPSS) trial version 25. Appropriate descriptive and inferential statistics were employed. Results: Only 34.1% of the dental teaching faculty strongly agreed on the adequacy of the theoretical aspects of posterior composite restoration compared to 69.3% for amalgam restorations. Fifty percent of the study participants believed that amalgam will be completely replaced by posterior composite in future. Eighty three percent of the dental teaching faculty pointed out the inadequacy of time in preclinical exercises for posterior composite restorations. Conclusion: The findings highlighted inadequacy in the theoretical, pre-clinical, and clinical aspects of teaching posterior composite restorations among dental undergraduates and warranted the curricular reforms should be made accordingly.