Pediatric Dentistry

It mainly provides primary and comprehensive preventive and therapeutic oral health care for infants and children through adolescence. Early Childhood Caries which is also known as tooth decay can develop rapidly in children. Children can also be affected with some rare oral diseases like Gingival Fibromatosis which will eventually result in disturbance in overall health of a child. Common oral problems in children are Tooth Decay: Gum Disease, Teeth Grinding: Thumb Sucking etc.

Restorative Dentistry: Restorative Dentistry is the management of diseases of the teeth and their associated and supporting structures. It mainly encompasses the dental specialties of endodontics: prosthodontics and periodontics.

Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery : It is a specialized branch in dentistry that mainly deals with the injuries and defects in the head, neck, jaws and soft tissues of the oral and maxillofacial regions.

Key things involved in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery is

• Removing impacted teeth and administering anesthesia
• Treating facial trauma and dental implants
• Oral pathological condition evaluation
• Performing orthognathic and cosmetic surgery

Orthodontics: It is also termed as a dentofacial orthopaedics and orthodontia. It mainly primarily deals with the malpositioned teeth and the jaws. Dentofacial Orthopaedics treatment mainly focus on treatment of  dental displacement and control and modification of facial growth. By using orthodontic appliances they will treat malocclusion. Decalcification: Root restoration will also come under orthodontic treatment. Orthodontic indices are one of the few tools that are available for orthodontics to grade  and asses malocclusion.

Some of the orthodontic indices are

• Angle's classification
• Malignment Index
• Occlusal Feature Index
• Malocclusion Severity Estimate (MSE)
• Treatment Priority Index (TPI)
• Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI)
• Ideal Tooth Relationship Index

Periodontology: This specialized branch of dentistry mainly deals with the diseases and conditions that mainly affect the supporting structures of the teeth. Gingiva, alveolar bone, cementum and, periodontal ligament comes under supporting tissues of the teeth.

Fluoride  & Fluoridation in Dentistry : Fluoride is a mineral found in soil and water and various food materials. Fluoride has positive effect on oral health. It can prevent or reverse tooth decay.When the amount of percentage of fluoride is more than expected you will experience change in the appearance of the tooth, it is called dental fluorosis

Cosmetic dentistry : It mainly intended to improve the appearance of teeth: gums. It primarily focuses on improvement of dental aesthetics in color: position: shape: size alignment and overall smile appreance.

Dental public health :  It is nonclinical branch of the dentistry.  It mainly involved in the assessment of key dental health needs and coming up with effective solutions to improve the dental health of populations. It mainly looks beyond the role of a dental practitioner in treating dental diseases.

Major areas of dental public health activity include:

Assessing the evidence on oral health and dental interventions:    programmes: and services

Policy and strategy development and implementation

Oral health improvement

Health and public protection

Developing and monitoring quality dental services

Dental public health intelligence

Academic dental public health

Role within health services

Dental materials: Dental materials should have certain characteristics to be effective in dental health maintenance. Characteristics which are particularly important are safety and compatibility with oral tissues. Dental materials and devices are regulated for safety and efficacy by the FDA.

Efficacy can be defined as the ability of a dental material to function as was intended within the oral cavity.

Following are the some of the ideal characteristics of dental materials

·         Biocompatibility

·         Cleanable

·         Repairable

·         Resistant to corrosion

·         Longevity

·         Esthetically pleasing

Following are the common dental materials

·         Composite : Direct Restoration, Veneers, Inlays

·         Amalgam:  Direct Restorations

·         Porcelain: Crowns, Bridges, Veneers, inlays and onlays

·         Acrylic: Dentures, Partial dentures

·         Gutta Percha : Root Canals

·         Thermoplastics: Bleaching’s, Orthodontic appliances

·         Meta Alloys: Partial Dental Claps

·         Stainless Steel: Crowns

·         Titanium: Implants

·         Zirconium : Fixed prosthetics

Holistic Dentistry: It is mainly defined as a field of dentistry which will promote dental health and wellness instead of the treatment of dental diseases.  It is also termed as a Biological dentistry: Unconventional dentistry: biocompatible dentistry. Most of the treatment will be in nonsurgical way in Holistic Dentistry

Pregnancy and Oral Health : Being pregnant puts you at higher risk for tooth decay, gum disease (also known as pregnancy gingivitis) and oral growths called ‘pregnancy tumour’s Most of these conditions are treatable. If pregnant lady is suffering from moderate to severe gum diseases. Higher risk chances for delivering a pre-term, low-birth weight baby. It can be easily diagnosed by dental X rays. Dental X rays are absolutely safe during the pregnancy. Anaesthesia during the first trimester may be linked to early miscarriage. Any dental work that requires anaesthesia such as a filling or root canal treatment, it is better to postpone the procedure until the second trimester of your pregnancy.

To keep your teeth healthy during pregnancy make sure to have following ingredients in your diet.

·         calcium

·         vitamin A

·         vitamin C

·         vitamin D

·         protein, and

·         phosphorous

Pregnancy mother with poor oral health have a risk of

·         delivering a pre-term baby

·         delivering a baby with a low birth weight

·         having pre-eclampsia (pregnancy hypertension)

·         Babies who are pre-term or have low birth weight have a higher risk of:

·         developmental complications

·         asthma

·         ear infections

·         birth abnormalities

·         behavioural difficulties

·         infant death

Pregnancy gingivitis, pregnancy tumours are common oral diseases encountered by most of the pregnant ladies.

Endodontics: It mainly encompasses the study and practice of the maintenance of the dental pulp. It also includes diagnosis: prevention and treatment of diseases and injuries of the dental pulp along with associated periradicular conditions.

The main purpose of the endodontic treatment is to remove the pathological pulp and clean and shape the root canal system. Disinfect the contaminated root canal and prevent re-infection and promote healing. The main reason behind the dental pulp problems is related to bacterial contamination of the root canal.

New Technologies in Dentistry: The field of dentistry is constantly changing and evolving to better suit patient needs. Advancements in dental technologies can offer you modern solutions to traditional dental problems. These technologies mainly help to improve dental treatments that can be performed in a more efficient: effective and comfortable manner.

1.       Dental Implant Technologies: Dental Implants are the state of the art tooth replacement systems. It mainly interferes with the bone of the skull or jaw to support a dental prosthesis such as a crown: bridge. The basis for modern dental implants is a biological process called osseointegration. Endosseous implant or fixture also comes under dental implant technologies.

·         CT Scan

·         Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT)

·         Bone grafting techniques

·         Periotest

2.      Oral Cancer Screening:  Oral Cancer Screening is an examination performed by a dentist to look for signs of cancer  or precancerous conditions in our mouth. The main goal of oral cancer screening is to detect precancerous lesions that may lead to mouth cancer at an early age.

·         VELscope

·         ViziLite

3.      Endodontic Systems : Root canal therapy implies set of procedures that aims to shape: clean root canals of infected tooth. These systems have the advantages of monitoring the root canal before during and after the root canal treatment.

4.      CAD/CAM Technology :  These are systems can improve the design and creations of dental restorations : including the crowns: veneers: fixed bridges. These can also be used to complete the dental restorations.

5.      Diagnodent and  Air abrasion: Diagnodentis mainly used for detecting the early cavities by using sound pulse and laser. Air abrasion alternative method for dental drill.

Geriatric dentistry : It is the branch of dentistry that mainly deliver dental care to older adults involving management and treatment of problems associated with age related diseases. Older adults are more susceptible to oral conditions or diseases due to an increase in chronic conditions and physical/mental disabilities.

Significant diseases that mainly effect in older patients

·         Dementia,

·         Arthritis,

·         palliative care,

·         osteoporosis,

·         osteoarthritis,

·         Rheumatoid arthritis,

·         Parkinson's disease,

·         atherosclerosis,

·         heart disease,

·         high blood pressure,

·         high cholesterol

Poor oral health is also one of the major issue that assisting the development of disease in older age.