Perspectivas sobre o tratamento endodôntico minimamente invasivo em dentes decíduos: uma revisão bibliométrica

Abstract

The preservation of deciduous teeth in the dental arches until the time of their physiological exfoliation is essential for good craniofacial development and a good quality of life for the child. However, this is often neglected in clinical practice, considering that endodontic treatment in primary teeth still represents a major challenge for Pediatric Dentistry. This occurs due to the anatomy of primary teeth, the polymicrobial characteristic and the difficulties in diagnosing pulp infections, the behavioral issues associated with pediatric patients, the technical complexity involved in endodontic treatment and the lack of expertise of operators. In order to minimize these challenges, minimally invasive endodontic treatment concepts for primary teeth have been proposed since 1990. However, there appears to be no agreement between the concepts and protocols described in the literature. This study aims to identify and analyze the characteristics of the studies, research trends and the publication pattern of scientific articles on minimally invasive endodontic treatment in primary teeth, generating bibliometric indicators on the topic. Searches were carried out in the Scopus, PubMed and Web of Science databases, using the search strategy with the crossings “AND” and “OR”: “Lesion Sterilization” AND “Tissue Repair” OR “Non-Instrumental Endodontic Treatment”, aiming survey the literature on Non- Instrumental Endodontic Treatment (NIET) and the Lesion Sterilization and Tissue Repair (LSTR) technique. Complete articles were included, such as experimental and epidemiological studies, literature reviews, case reports, systematic reviews and meta-analyses that addressed the use of LSTR and NIET in primary teeth. Conference proceedings, book chapters and publications outside the scope of the topic were excluded. Bibliometric analysis and scientific mapping were carried out with the software RStudio v.4.4.1. The results indicate that minimally invasive endodontic treatment in primary teeth is a promising alternative, with a significant increase in scientific production between 2016 and 2024. The most frequent publications are clinical trials and come from countries such as India and Brazil, with the journal “International Journal of Clinical Pediatric Dentistry” the most prolific in relation to NIET and LSTR. The article with the most global citations was “Endodontic Treatment of Primary Teeth Using a Combination of Antibacterial Drugs”. More recent documents, such as “A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Nonvital Pulp Therapy for Primary Teeth” and “Use of Non-Vital Pulp Therapies in Primary Teeth”, had a high average number of annual citations. Most studies focus on drug combinations, with "metronidazole" and "ciprofloxacin" being the most frequent terms in the literature. The 3Mix paste and its composition variations have been widely evaluated in scientific research.