Intraoperative pain: a major issue in endodontics?
The pulp is the most sensitive tissue in the body.
An inflamed pulp, even more so.
And yet, in the literature, at conferences, in endodontic training, pain control is barely mentioned.
As if it were never a problem.
Dig a little into the subject and you quickly find that every practitioner has already met an anesthetic that "will not take", in a patient sometimes hastily labeled as "resistant".
Pain, a "necessary evil"?
I have been told: "ZerØ Pain Dentistry? I don't believe in it!"
*In fact, 60% of practitioners say it is unavoidable to cause pain at certain moments during treatment.* (*) I believed it myself for a long time. When, for instance, my patient had waited too long before coming in.
Some patients themselves still keep quiet about their discomfort, convinced that pain is the price to pay for having their teeth treated. The first obstacle to ZerØ Pain Dentistry is therefore a view of pain as "a necessary evil". And since pain is invisible and cannot be measured, it is common to play it down, or even to deny it.
"Never change a winning team"... well, once in a while ;) !
Finally, the major obstacle to changing the way we practice is the force of our habits.
What holds us back? Investing in new practices, new equipment, spending time on training. A lot of change? But for what benefit?
A real benefit for everyone. ZerØ Pain Dentistry is within reach and is now essential to our practice. In France and internationally, more and more practitioners are improving:
- ✅ their anesthetic techniques,
- ✅ their relational skills,
- ✅ their posture,
- ✅ their movements.
For the patient, of course, but more widely too: for better clinical efficiency, to reduce stress in the practice, and to prevent disputes or relational difficulties. ZerØ Pain Dentistry starts with a decision. It is not just a technique. It is the combination of clinical and behavioral skills, for an overall improvement in the quality of care.
*(*) from an SD4DS survey of 200 practitioners carried out in 2024*
Watch the video
A conversation around the age-old subject of dental pain.
On the need for, and the value of, setting ourselves the ambitious goal of removing every form of pain from the dental office.
- 00:00 Intro
- 05:03 Why ZerØ Pain Dentistry?
- 15:09 Which skills?
- 18:00 Who is concerned by ZerØ Pain Dentistry?
- 24:26 The pain process
- 30:53 Levels of pain
- 34:10 The benefits of ZerØ Pain Dentistry
- 38:07 Is it only for the good and the benefit of patients?
- 40:02 Does it always work?
- 48:38 How do we put it into practice?
- 52:29 Electronic anesthesia. Why? With what? In which disciplines?
- 1:07:50 So, shall we get started?