Improving Light-Curing Instruction in Dental School

Delivering an inadequate amount of light to a light-cured resin will result in a resin that is inadequately cured. This study measured the radiant exposure that students delivered to a simulated restoration to determine if instruction with immediate feedback increased the amount of light they delivered. The amount of light (radiant exposure in J/cm 2 ) delivered to a simulated restoration by sixty-three dental students using the same curing light for twenty seconds was recorded. The experiment was repeated after the students had been given detailed light-curing instructions together with immediate feedback using the MARCPS system. Initially, the students delivered between 1.4 and 17.5 J/cm 2 (mean±SD: 9.8±3.5 J/cm 2 ). After receiving instructions and feedback on their light-curing technique, they delivered between 6.7 J/cm 2 and 17.8 J/cm 2 (mean±SD: 13.2±3.3 J/cm 2 ). ANOVA and Fisher’s post hoc multiple comparison tests showed that providing immediate feedback on the students’ light-curing technique made a significant improvement in the radiant exposure they delivered (p