Perception and Attitude of Parents towards the Pulpectomy Procedure - A Qualitative Study

Aim To understand the perception and attitude of parents towards the importance of primary dentition and pulpectomy procedure.Methodology A qualitative study was conducted through in-depth interviews with parents of pediatric patients aged 4-9 years requiring pulpectomy procedure. The parents who were willing and whose children underwent the pulpectomy procedure as well as those who were unwilling were interviewed in the local language through telephone or face-to-face interviews. The answers were recorded transcribed and translated to English. The questionnaire used in the study assessed the parental knowledge and awareness about the importance of primary teeth and the pulpectomy treatment. Qualitative data were then analyzed using NVivo.Results Parents in the unwilling group considered the primary tooth and pulpectomy procedure as insignificant since the tooth eventually exfoliates. Parents of children who underwent pulpectomy reported that pulpectomy and crown placement improved the chewing ability of their children.Conclusion The importance of primary tooth and the need for pulpectomy was accepted by many parents but lack of knowledge regarding the treatments advised for primary teeth still prevails among the parents.