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Making sense of sensibility: part 1
1Specialty Registrar in Restorative Dentistry, Charles Clifford Dental Hospital, Sheffield, UK. kasim.butt1@nhs.net.
Abstract:
Thermal and electric pulp sensibility tests are commonly used by the majority of clinicians when diagnosing endodontic disease. These tests indirectly determine the state of pulpal health by assessing the response of the Aδ nerve fibres within the pulp-dentine complex. A positive response to sensibility testing indicates that the nerve fibres are functioning but does not give any quantitative information on nerve function, pulpal blood flow or histological status of the dental pulp. These tests have inherent limitations, including a reliance on a patient's subjective response to the test and the dentist's interpretation of the patient's response. This two-part series aims to help clinicians to reach an accurate endodontic diagnosis by providing an overview of how to undertake common pulpal sensibility tests correctly, how to interpret their results and understand their limitations. This section provides an overview of pulp testing, definitions of terminology relevant to pulp testing, the diagnostic uses of pulp testing and a summary of the diagnostic accuracy of different pulp tests.
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