Tooth pain is a common complaint in relation to endodontic treatment. Research suggests up to 19% of patients experience severe pain following initial orthograde root canal treatment, but it remains unclear why this occurs. This lecture will present emerging findings from a large NIH-funded practice-based study that collected demographic, pain, psychosocial, anatomic, disease, and procedure information to help tease out what are the most important factors related to predicting severe post-treatment pain. Furthermore, it will discuss medium and long-term pain outcomes reported by patients.

Lecture Objectives:
At the conclusion, the participant should be able to:
-State the likelihood of pain in the first week following endodontic treatment
-List the putative factors for pain in the first week following treatment
-Learn about potential strategies for preventing post-treatment pain based upon these research findings
-Describe the medium and long-term outcomes of patients reporting pain following endodontic treatment

Dr. Donald Nixdorf graduated from the University of Alberta, Faculty of Dentistry in 1996. He then completed a residency in hospital dentistry with a Masters at The Ohio State University, Anesthesia fellowship at Johns Hopkins University, Orofacial Pain fellowship at the University of Alberta, and a Master of Science in Clinic Research at the University of Minnesota as a part of an NIH-funded training program. He is a Diplomate of the National Dental Board of Anesthesiology (NDBA) and the American Board of Orofacial Pain (ABOP). Dr. Nixdorf is an Associate Professor, Division Director, and past Graduate Program Director at the University of Minnesota in the Division of TMD & Orofacial Pain. Dr. Nixdorf maintains a clinical practice restricted to the diagnoses and management of chronic TMD pain, headaches and neuropathic pain within a multi-disciplinary settings. Dr. Nixdorf’s research has focused on the topics of persistent non-odontogenic “tooth” pain, investigating classification, diagnosis, epidemiology, exploration of mechanisms, and treatment options. In 2018, Dr. Nixdorf was awarded AAE honorary membership for his service to the field of endodontics.