The U.S. Army Institute of Dental Research dental materials shelf-life survey: questionnaire results.

To define the nature and the extent of problems that can be related to the storage stability of perishable dental materials in the U.S. Army, questionnaires were sent to each U.S. Army Dental Corps Officer, supply NCO, and laboratory technician. Results reveal that two-thirds of dentists believe that the deterioration of perishable materials is a significant (28%) or occasional (39%) problem in their practice; the most common problem noted by dental clinicians is loss of efficacy of local anesthetics. One-half of clinicians and supply personnel report that they frequently receive perishable supplies at or near the expiration date.