VOLUME 12 , ISSUE 3 ( May-June, 2021 ) > List of Articles
Kavuda Nagarjuna Prasad, Nivedita Sahoo, MS Rami Reddy, Piyush Gupta, Saranya Sreedhar, Aravind Krishnan
Citation Information :
DOI: 10.5005/jp-journals-10015-1832
License: CC BY-NC 4.0
Published Online: 00-06-2021
Copyright Statement: Copyright © 2021; The Author(s).
Aim and objective: This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the trends in the storage of orthodontic records among final-year orthodontic postgraduates in India. Materials and methods: A web-based survey form (Google Form, Google Inc., ABC Alphabet, California, USA) was created and sent to 325 final-year orthodontic postgraduate trainees in India through email and third-party messenger applications. The questionnaire consisted of queries regarding the current method of storage of orthodontic records, the problems being faced storing them, and the recommended method for storing them. The data acquired were subjected to descriptive statistical analysis. Results: The response rate was 80.6%. The majority of participants stored all their records and 80.5% of them had a history of loss of records. All the participants stored study models in plaster form and 95.8% of participants stored the photographs and radiographs in both hard and soft copy forms. Google Drive was used by 82.8% of participants as their backup and 86.6% of them stored their soft copies in an external hard disk. Conclusion: Study models in physical forms; photographs and radiographs in both hard and soft copy forms are currently being used and recommended by the majority of the participants. External hard disks have been used by many as a mode of backup of records compared with cloud services. Among participants using cloud services as their mode of backup, Google Drive is commonly being used. Duration of patient's record storage has to be a minimum of 10 years which is not being followed by most of the participants. Clinical significance: The current trends in various methods of storing orthodontic records help the clinician to know the best method suitable for them in archiving accurate records for longer periods.