Evaluation of the effectiveness of teledentistry on diagnostic accuracy and treatment planning among Jordanian dentists

TL;DR

This study evaluates how well Jordanian dentists can diagnose and plan treatments for children's dental cases using teledentistry, finding high accuracy in clear cases but variability in treatment plans.

Contribution

The study provides empirical evidence on teledentistry's diagnostic accuracy and treatment planning consistency among Jordanian dentists using pediatric clinical scenarios.

Findings

Diagnostic agreement was highest for cases with distinct clinical presentations, such as early childhood caries (92.1%).

Treatment planning agreement was highest for molar-incisor hypomineralization (64.4%) and functional class III cases (59.4%).

Variability in treatment planning suggests a need for standardized guidelines and professional development in teledentistry.

Abstract

To assess the diagnostic accuracy and treatment planning agreement among Jordanian dentists when using teledentistry.

Thirty children underwent dental examinations. Standardized intraoral photographs and brief case histories from pediatric patients were compiled into clinical case scenarios. Eight representative cases were selected and presented in a Google Forms survey to licensed dentists in Jordan. Participants reviewed the cases, providing clinical diagnoses and proposing treatment plans. Responses were analyzed to determine diagnostic accuracy and agreement on treatment planning.

Diagnostic agreement was highest for cases with distinct clinical presentations. Case #5 (early childhood caries) showed the highest agreement at 92.1%, followed by Case #3 (avulsion; 91.1%) and Case #6 (ectopic eruption; 85.1%). Treatment planning agreement followed a similar pattern. The highest concordance was reported for Case #4 (molar-incisor hypomineralization; 64.4%) and Case #7(Functional class III/anterior crossbite 59.4%).

Teledentistry enables high diagnostic accuracy among Jordanian dentists, especially in pediatric cases with well-defined presentations. However, the observed variability in treatment planning highlights the need for standardized clinical guidelines and targeted professional development to optimize teledentistry's integration into routine dental care.

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