Dry pulp therapy, also known as cadaver therapy, is a very old method of endodontic treatment that was widely used around the world many years ago.
The steps of dry pulp treatment are to first deactivate the pulp, then remove the pulp inside the pulp chamber, but keep the pulp tissue inside the root canal, and then place a paraformaldehyde-based antiseptic drug in the root canal opening to try to mummify the pulp tissue inside the root canal, which is to maintain a state of aseptic necrosis, enclose it in the root canal system, and then repair the defect of the crown.
The advantages of dry pulp treatment are that it is relatively easy, quick and inexpensive to perform. However, the disadvantages are also obvious. One is that it is impossible to ensure that the pulp tissue in the root canal is not infected by bacteria, and the infected root pulp can spread further causing infection of the alveolar bone in the apical region. In some cases, the small amount of live pulp in the apical area can cause calcification in the root canal, making it difficult to completely remove the infection from the root canal during subsequent treatment. Dry pulp treatment was indeed practical in the era of shortage of medical treatment, but it is very outdated in today’s rapidly developing economy. At present, dry pulp therapy is a practically obsolete technique, and has been replaced by root canal therapy.