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Making sense of sensibility: part 1

British Dental Journal volume 232, pages 307–310 (2022)Cite this article

Abstract

Thermal and electric pulp sensibility tests are commonly used by the majority of clinicians when diagnosing endodontic disease. These tests indirectly determine the state of pulpal health by assessing the response of the Aδ nerve fibres within the pulp-dentine complex. A positive response to sensibility testing indicates that the nerve fibres are functioning but does not give any quantitative information on nerve function, pulpal blood flow or histological status of the dental pulp. These tests have inherent limitations, including a reliance on a patient's subjective response to the test and the dentist's interpretation of the patient's response. This two-part series aims to help clinicians to reach an accurate endodontic diagnosis by providing an overview of how to undertake common pulpal sensibility tests correctly, how to interpret their results and understand their limitations. This section provides an overview of pulp testing, definitions of terminology relevant to pulp testing, the diagnostic uses of pulp testing and a summary of the diagnostic accuracy of different pulp tests.

Key points

  • Provides a background overview of pulp testing and a summary of the 'jigsaw' of information a clinician may put together when making an endodontic diagnosis.

  • Outlines terminology relevant to pulp testing and their definitions.

  • Provides a summary of the diagnostic uses of pulp testing and the diagnostic accuracy of common pulp tests used in clinical practice.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Specialty Registrar in Restorative Dentistry, Charles Clifford Dental Hospital, Sheffield, UK

    Kasim Butt

  2. Specialist in Restorative Dentistry, Endodontics and Prosthodontics, Consultant in Restorative Dentistry, Charles Clifford Dental Hospital, Sheffield, UK

    Ian Harris

Authors
  1. Kasim Butt
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  2. Ian Harris
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Contributions

The original concept for the paper was devised by Kasim Butt and was developed, jointly, in discussion between the two authors. Both authors wrote substantial parts of the paper, with Ian Harris revising successive drafts. Both authors contributed equally to the final approval of the version to be published.

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Correspondence to Kasim Butt.

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The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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Butt, K., Harris, I. Making sense of sensibility: part 1. Br Dent J 232, 307–310 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41415-022-3988-1

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