Comparison of Evidence-based and Conventional Education Effects on Radiography Assessment before Endodontic Treatment

Introduction: Evidence-based education has been introduced to dentistry as a new educational tool. However, its effectiveness should be evaluated in different educational topics. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of evidence-based and conventional education on radiography assessment before endodontic treatment.

Methods: In this semi-experimental study 75 senior dental students of Kermanshah Dentistry School were enrolled. Demographic information and the results of evaluation were collected using a weblog designed for this purpose. 20 questions were prepared to be answered in 30 minutes. 12 topics were covered in the questionnaire. To analyze the data, the paired sample t-test, Wilcoxon, and Whitney U tests were used.

Results: The finding of the present study showed that total scores of the test in both conventional and evidence-based groups significantly improved after education (P=0.005 and P=0.001, respectively). There was a significant difference between the two groups (P=0.047) and evidence-based education showed better results in comparison with conventional one.

Conclusion: The present study asserts that evidence-based education can lead to better diagnostic performance of senior dental students and thus can be used as an efficient alternative for conventional education methods in dental schools.