Caries detection with xeroradiographs: the influence of observer experience.

This study evaluated whether the degree of experience of dentists with xeroradiography influenced their performance in interpreting proximal surface dental caries on xeroradiographs. The performance of ten dentists with a minimum of 1.5 years of experience with xeroradiography was compared with that of dentists inexperienced with xeroradiographs. These data, collected in a clinical environment, were compared with those collected in a controlled laboratory environment by dentists inexperienced in interpretation of xeroradiographs. It was found that lack of experience in viewing xeroradiographs does not compromise interpretation of these images. Furthermore, both high- and low-contrast xeroradiographs were found to be slightly more useful than conventional radiographs for the detection of proximal surface caries. In general, observers who had optimal viewing conditions performed better than those in a clinical environment.