Conservative treatment of pulp tissue: What is its importance?

Abstract

Tooth loss enables the occurrence of various comorbidities and social well-being problems, such as aesthetic and phonetics issues, which may impact the quality of life, especially among children and young people. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, lower-income areas are most affected with the highest number of decayed, missing, or filled permanent teeth. However, knowledge and awareness regarding the importance of the preservation of pulp tissue and dental integrity have increased in dentistry. Conservative or vital pulp therapy is a biologically based procedure, less invasive, and more economic alternative to conventional endodontic treatment. Despite showing high success rates when properly indicated, this approach can preserve pulp vitality and allow continued root development under favorable biological conditions after caries, dental trauma, or iatrogenic procedures. From a biological and clinical standpoint, conservative pulp treatment is capable of reducing the endodontic treatment time and improving the long-term prognosis for tooth survival, especially in those areas that suffer from oral health services precariousness.