Teaching and Practice of Repair of Resin Modified Glass Ionomer Restorations in Dental Institutions of Karachi

Replacement of a restoration leads to excessive cutting of the otherwise healthy tooth structure which affects the integrity of teeth. Repairing existing glass ionomer restorations may appear to be a good alternative to complete replacement of the restoration which presents no evidence of failure on clinical exam. The objectives of the study were to determine the proportion of faculty advocating the teaching of repair of resin modified glass ionomer restorations to dental students in the dental institutions of Karachi and to explore the factors that affect the decision making process of defective restorations repair. An 11 item questionnaire was provided to the faculty members of the dental institutions in Karachi. Nine out of ten dental institutions participated in the survey. Up to 72% of the respondents stated that glass ionomer restorations (RM GIC) repair is advisable in some situations, whereas, 50% of the respondents stated that they have performed such type of interventions and have achieved success. Around 57% stated that they teach such procedures to students and 52% of the respondents stated that the course of instruction is at clinical level mainly. Up to 57% of the respondents teach the repair of defective resin modified glass ionomer restorations when encountered and the present mode of teaching is mainly at the clinical level (52%).Patient’s existing oral hygiene and occlusal relationship appeared to be the most important factors in decision making process for repairing existing resin modified glass ionomer restorations.