Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of endodontic services provided to participants in a longitudinal cohort study. Methods: The "Florida Dental Care Study", (FDCS), was a prospective longitudinal cohort study of persons who at baseline had at least one tooth, were 45 years or older, and resided in north Florida, U.S.A. An in-person interview and clinical dental exam were conducted at baseline, 24, and 48 months after baseline, with 6-monthly telephones interviews between those times. Dental record information was abstracted afterward. Results: Thirteen percent of participants received at least one endodontic procedure during followup. Endodontic services constituted approximately 2% of all dental procedures performed. Conventional root canal therapy comprised 94% of the endodontic services, and was approximately evenly distributed among anterior teeth, premolars, and molars. Retreatment and apicoectomy accounted for only 3% of endodontic procedures. The most common reason(s) for dental visits in which a root canal occurred were toothache, self-reported infection, and dental sensitivity. Conclusions: Endodontics comprised a significant portion of incident dental care received by this diverse adult sample. Incident dental symptoms were the main reasons for endodontic treatment, but not all persons with endodontic symptoms during follow-up actually sought dental care of some type.

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