Efficacy of Video-Assisted Instruction on Knowledge and Performance of Dental Students in Access Cavity Preparation.

INTRODUCTION: The conventional method of teaching endodontics has some drawbacks. Due to the small size of the oral cavity, students cannot closely observe the clinical procedure. Use of new teaching modalities such as the intraoral camera may obviate this problem. This study assessed the effect of video-assisted clinical instruction in dentistry (VACID) on dental student's knowledge and performance in access cavity preparation during endodontic treatment. METHODS AND MATERIALS: In this interventional study, twenty six undergraduate students were equally divided into two groups and received instructions on access cavity preparation via conventional demonstration (CD) or VACID using intraoral camera plus conventional demonstration. Students' knowledge was assessed before and after the demonstration. The scores obtained by students were compared between the two groups. Data were analyzed using the Mann Whitney U test. RESULTS: No significant difference was found between the two groups in knowledge and performance scores of students about pulp chamber removal, under-extension, over-extension, gouging, perforation or finding the main and extra canals. However, use of intraoral camera significantly reduced the number of student visits to instructors for problem solving (P=0.001). CONCLUSION: VACID is an effective educational method and as efficient as conventional demonstration in endodontics; as a result it can be used in combination with conventional teaching.

The association between oral lichen planus and hepatitis C virus infection; a report from northeast of iran.

BACKGROUND: The association between hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and oral lichen planus (OLP) has been the focus of many studies. Fifteen percent of HCV infections lead to sets of extrahepatic manifestations including lichen planus (LP). The prevalence of HCV is heavily influenced by geographical location. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between OLP and HCV infection in Mashhad, northeast of Iran. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Blood samples were taken from 134 OLP patients and 134 healthy controls (without OLP) to screen for anti-HCV by ELISA (third generation) and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for HCV-RNA. RESULTS: Of the 134 OLP patients only three (2.23 %) had HCV infection where both anti-HCV and HCV-RNA were positive. All controls were negative for both anti-HCV and HCV-RNA (P = 0.082). CONCLUSIONS: Our investigation illustrated that the prevalence of hepatitis C was higher among OLP patients compared to the control group. These findings are in line with previous results that reported a hepatitis C prevalence of 0.19% among the general population of Mashhad.