Abstract
Abstract Training on basic clinical skills in pre-clinical practice is indispensable for the development of clinical practice. The mirror technique (MT) is an effective skill for treating difficult-to-see areas and is important for implementing minimal intervention (MI). However, it is necessary to establish a method of teaching the MT because it is not easy for students to learn. Our previous report indicated that the position of the dental mirror was one of the factors that influence the cutting skill with the MT. In this study, the effects of finger rest (FR) position and practitioner’s hand length on the accuracy of cutting test circles assuming caries with the MT was investigated.
Twenty-four trainee dentists at Niigata University Medical and Dental Hospital in 2023 were divided into two groups by hand and finger length, a long group and a short group, and there were 12 subjects in each group. They were instructed to cut a standardized test circle on the palatal side of the upper right artificial central incisor based on MI using the MT. They performed trial cutting one time with FR put on each of the three different sites : right maxillary canine, first premolar and second premolar. The cutting range and depth were measured using digital images and STL data on the artificial teeth after cutting. The time for the procedures and the cavity checking numbers were also measured, and compared between the two groups.
As a result, the cutting accuracy of the long hand group in the cervical areas was significantly lower than in the short hand group. The distance between operating area and FR position seemed to be closely related, and it is suggested that the hand length of the practitioner affects cutting accuracy.
