Pulp Vitality Diagnosis by Means of an Optical Pulp Scanning Device

This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of an Optical Pulp Scanning (OPS) device. A total of 421 teeth from 107 emergency patients were investigated. Pulp vitality was assessed using conventional diagnostic methods (ConvDia), cold pulp testing (CPT), and a final diagnosis (FinDia) based on the pulp chamber contents (PCCs) of teeth requiring endodontic treatment (EmeTe). Following ConvDia, OPS screening was performed, endodontic access was prepared, and the FinDia was established. The specificity, sensitivity, as well as positive and negative predictive values of ConvDia, CPT, and FinDia were calculated against the OPS results. The null hypothesis stated that specificity and sensitivity would be equal to or lower than 90% and 80%, respectively. OPS sensitivity was 66.2% and 72.2% (EmeTe) for ConvDia, 66.2% and 69.8% (EmeTe) for CPT, and 76.9% for FinDia. Specificity was 26.4% and 25.5% (EmeTe) for ConvDia, 26.9% and 21.7% (EmeTe) for CPT, and 31.5% for FinDia. These results suggest that, at its current stage of development, the OPS device does not provide an acceptable level of diagnostic accuracy, particularly in vital teeth.