Details
 

2004 - An Introduction to the Fundamentals of the Prosthodontic Specialty

Author/Editor: Natalie Kaweckyj, LDA, RF, CDA, CDPMA, COA, COMSA, CPFDA, CRFDA, MADAA, BA

The American Dental Association (ADA) has defined prosthodontics as “the dental specialty pertaining to the diagnosis, treatment planning, rehabilitation, and maintenance of oral function, comfort, appearance, and health of patients with clinical conditions associated with missing or deficient teeth and/or oral and maxillofacial tissues using biocompatible substitutes.”

• A prosthodontist has three years of comprehensive training following dental school in several areas of restorative dentistry. This training includes dental implants, crowns, fixed partial dentures, complete dentures, removable partial dentures, esthetics, occlusion, and facial and dental birth developmental defects. Prosthodontists are also trained in the technical and technological aspects of laboratory fabrication of complex dental prosthetics and complex restoration of dental and facial esthetics.
• Maxillofacial prosthetics is a branch of prosthodontics that requires one additional year of fellowship training with a focus on treatment of patients who have acquired and congenital defects of the head and neck region due to cancer, surgery, trauma, and birth defects. Innovative methods to help with the treatment of sleep apnea and temporomandibular joint disorders have also evolved over time as have the educational responsibilities to provide those services to patients served by prosthodontists.
• This course will cover the fundamentals of the Prosthodontic Specialty and some of the procedures a newly emerging dental professional may encounter.

CE Credits: 2.5
Original Release Date: 2019; Review Date: 2020; Expiration Date: 2023

Printer-Friendly Version