Dental Care
The total of dental diagnostic, preventive, and restorative services provided to meet the needs of a patient (from Illustrated Dictionary of Dentistry, 1982).
Radiography
Radiography, Thoracic
Radiography, Dental, Digital
A rapid, low-dose, digital imaging system using a small intraoral sensor instead of radiographic film, an intensifying screen, and a charge-coupled device. It presents the possibility of reduced patient exposure and minimal distortion, although resolution and latitude are inferior to standard dental radiography. A receiver is placed in the mouth, routing signals to a computer which images the signals on a screen or in print. It includes digitizing from x-ray film or any other detector. (From MEDLINE abstracts; personal communication from Dr. Charles Berthold, NIDR)
Schools, Dental
Educational institutions for individuals specializing in the field of dentistry.
Students, Dental
Dental Caries
Radiography, Panoramic
Extraoral body-section radiography depicting an entire maxilla, or both maxilla and mandible, on a single film.
Dental Care for Chronically Ill
Dental care for patients with chronic diseases. These diseases include chronic cardiovascular, endocrinologic, hematologic, immunologic, neoplastic, and renal diseases. The concept does not include dental care for the mentally or physically disabled which is DENTAL CARE FOR DISABLED.
Dental Care for Children
The giving of attention to the special dental needs of children, including the prevention of tooth diseases and instruction in dental hygiene and dental health. The dental care may include the services provided by dental specialists.
Dental Clinics
Facilities where dental care is provided to patients.
Dental Pulp
Dental Hygienists
Faculty, Dental
Dental Care for Disabled
Dental care for the emotionally, mentally, or physically disabled patient. It does not include dental care for the chronically ill ( = DENTAL CARE FOR CHRONICALLY ILL).
Dental Anxiety
Radiography, Bitewing
Technique involving the passage of X-rays through oral structures to create a film record while a central tab or wing of dental X-ray film is being held between upper and lower teeth.
Insurance, Dental
Insurance providing coverage for dental care.
Dental Arch
The curve formed by the row of TEETH in their normal position in the JAW. The inferior dental arch is formed by the mandibular teeth, and the superior dental arch by the maxillary teeth.
Dental Research
Dental Care for Aged
The giving of attention to the special dental needs of the elderly for proper maintenance or treatment. The dental care may include the services provided by dental specialists.
Radiographic Image Enhancement
Dental Plaque
A film that attaches to teeth, often causing DENTAL CARIES and GINGIVITIS. It is composed of MUCINS, secreted from salivary glands, and microorganisms.
Dental Offices
The room or rooms in which the dentist and dental staff provide care. Offices include all rooms in the dentist's office suite.
Dental Records
Dental Staff
Dental Equipment
The nonexpendable items used by the dentist or dental staff in the performance of professional duties. (From Boucher's Clinical Dental Terminology, 4th ed, p106)
Dental Implants
General Practice, Dental
Nonspecialized dental practice which is concerned with providing primary and continuing dental care.
X-Ray Intensifying Screens
Screens which absorb the energy in the x-ray beam that has penetrated the patient and convert this energy into a light pattern which has as nearly as possible the same information as the original x-ray beam. The more light a screen produces for a given input of x-radiation, the less x-ray exposure and thus shorter exposure time are needed to expose the film. In most film-screen systems, the film is sandwiched between two screens in a cassette so that the emulsion on each side is exposed to the light from its contiguous screen.
Dental Amalgam
An alloy used in restorative dentistry that contains mercury, silver, tin, copper, and possibly zinc.
Radiography, Abdominal
Education, Dental, Continuing
Educational programs designed to inform dentists of recent advances in their fields.
Radiography, Dental
Radiographic techniques used in dentistry.
Dental Models
Presentation devices used for patient education and technique training in dentistry.
Education, Dental, Graduate
Ethics, Dental
Dental Service, Hospital
Hospital department providing dental care.
Dentists
Individuals licensed to practice DENTISTRY.
Societies, Dental
Societies whose membership is limited to dentists.
Technology, Dental
Dental Health Surveys
A systematic collection of factual data pertaining to dental or oral health and disease in a human population within a given geographic area.
Fluorosis, Dental
A chronic endemic form of hypoplasia of the dental enamel caused by drinking water with a high fluorine content during the time of tooth formation, and characterized by defective calcification that gives a white chalky appearance to the enamel, which gradually undergoes brown discoloration. (Jablonski's Dictionary of Dentistry, 1992, p286)
Licensure, Dental
The granting of a license to practice dentistry.
Laboratories, Dental
Dental Materials
Practice Management, Dental
Dental Sac
Dense fibrous layer formed from mesodermal tissue that surrounds the epithelial enamel organ. The cells eventually migrate to the external surface of the newly formed root dentin and give rise to the cementoblasts that deposit cementum on the developing root, fibroblasts of the developing periodontal ligament, and osteoblasts of the developing alveolar bone.
Tomography, X-Ray Computed
Mandible
Dental Instruments
Dentistry
Mass Chest X-Ray
X-ray screening of large groups of persons for diseases of the lung and heart by means of radiography of the chest.
Esthetics, Dental
Comprehensive Dental Care
Providing for the full range of dental health services for diagnosis, treatment, follow-up, and rehabilitation of patients.
Radiography, Dual-Energy Scanned Projection
Molar
The most posterior teeth on either side of the jaw, totaling eight in the deciduous dentition (2 on each side, upper and lower), and usually 12 in the permanent dentition (three on each side, upper and lower). They are grinding teeth, having large crowns and broad chewing surfaces. (Jablonski, Dictionary of Dentistry, 1992, p821)
Health Education, Dental
Infection Control, Dental
Efforts to prevent and control the spread of infections within dental health facilities or those involving provision of dental care.
Dental Papilla
Mesodermal tissue enclosed in the invaginated portion of the epithelial enamel organ and giving rise to the dentin and pulp.
Dental Prosthesis
An artificial replacement for one or more natural teeth or part of a tooth, or associated structures, ranging from a portion of a tooth to a complete denture. The dental prosthesis is used for cosmetic or functional reasons, or both. DENTURES and specific types of dentures are also available. (From Boucher's Clinical Dental Terminology, 4th ed, p244 & Jablonski, Dictionary of Dentistry, 1992, p643)
Radiology Information Systems
Information systems, usually computer-assisted, designed to store, manipulate, and retrieve information for planning, organizing, directing, and controlling administrative activities associated with the provision and utilization of radiology services and facilities.
Tooth Diseases
'Tooth diseases' is a broad term referring to various conditions affecting the teeth, including dental caries (cavities), periodontal disease (gum disease), tooth wear, tooth sensitivity, oral cancer, and developmental anomalies, which can result in pain, discomfort, or loss of teeth if left untreated.
Tooth Root
The part of a tooth from the neck to the apex, embedded in the alveolar process and covered with cementum. A root may be single or divided into several branches, usually identified by their relative position, e.g., lingual root or buccal root. Single-rooted teeth include mandibular first and second premolars and the maxillary second premolar teeth. The maxillary first premolar has two roots in most cases. Maxillary molars have three roots. (Jablonski, Dictionary of Dentistry, 1992, p690)
Dental Audit
A detailed review and evaluation of selected clinical records by qualified professional personnel for evaluating quality of dental care.
Oral Health
Dental Waste
Dental Implantation
Economics, Dental
Economic aspects of the dental profession and dental care.
DMF Index
"Decayed, missing and filled teeth," a routinely used statistical concept in dentistry.
Dental Alloys
A mixture of metallic elements or compounds with other metallic or metalloid elements in varying proportions for use in restorative or prosthetic dentistry.
Dental Caries Susceptibility
Arthrography
Dental Informatics
Oral Hygiene
The practice of personal hygiene of the mouth. It includes the maintenance of oral cleanliness, tissue tone, and general preservation of oral health.
Dental Occlusion
The relationship of all the components of the masticatory system in normal function. It has special reference to the position and contact of the maxillary and mandibular teeth for the highest efficiency during the excursive movements of the jaw that are essential for mastication. (From Jablonski, Dictionary of Dentistry, 1992, p556, p472)
Radiation Dosage
The amount of radiation energy that is deposited in a unit mass of material, such as tissues of plants or animal. In RADIOTHERAPY, radiation dosage is expressed in gray units (Gy). In RADIOLOGIC HEALTH, the dosage is expressed by the product of absorbed dose (Gy) and quality factor (a function of linear energy transfer), and is called radiation dose equivalent in sievert units (Sv).
Radiology Department, Hospital
Dental Scaling
Removal of dental plaque and dental calculus from the surface of a tooth, from the surface of a tooth apical to the gingival margin accumulated in periodontal pockets, or from the surface coronal to the gingival margin.
Cone-Beam Computed Tomography
Incisor
Dentistry, Operative
That phase of clinical dentistry concerned with the restoration of parts of existing teeth that are defective through disease, trauma, or abnormal development, to the state of normal function, health, and esthetics, including preventive, diagnostic, biological, mechanical, and therapeutic techniques, as well as material and instrument science and application. (Jablonski's Dictionary of Dentistry, 2d ed, p237)
Dental Facilities
Use for material on dental facilities in general or for which there is no specific heading.
Tooth, Deciduous
The teeth of the first dentition, which are shed and replaced by the permanent teeth.
Dental Devices, Home Care
Preventive Dentistry
The branch of dentistry concerned with the prevention of disease and the maintenance and promotion of oral health.
Maxilla
One of a pair of irregularly shaped bones that form the upper jaw. A maxillary bone provides tooth sockets for the superior teeth, forms part of the ORBIT, and contains the MAXILLARY SINUS.
Photography, Dental
Tooth Extraction
The surgical removal of a tooth. (Dorland, 28th ed)
Radiation Protection
Dental Porcelain
A type of porcelain used in dental restorations, either jacket crowns or inlays, artificial teeth, or metal-ceramic crowns. It is essentially a mixture of particles of feldspar and quartz, the feldspar melting first and providing a glass matrix for the quartz. Dental porcelain is produced by mixing ceramic powder (a mixture of quartz, kaolin, pigments, opacifiers, a suitable flux, and other substances) with distilled water. (From Jablonski's Dictionary of Dentistry, 1992)
Community Dentistry
The practice of dentistry concerned with preventive as well as diagnostic and treatment programs in a circumscribed population.
Cuspid
Stomatognathic Diseases
Pediatric Dentistry
The practice of dentistry concerned with the dental problems of children, proper maintenance, and treatment. The dental care may include the services provided by dental specialists.
American Dental Association
Professional society representing the field of dentistry.
Sensitivity and Specificity
Dentist's Practice Patterns
Patterns of practice in dentistry related to diagnosis and treatment.
Dental Implantation, Endosseous
Reproducibility of Results
The statistical reproducibility of measurements (often in a clinical context), including the testing of instrumentation or techniques to obtain reproducible results. The concept includes reproducibility of physiological measurements, which may be used to develop rules to assess probability or prognosis, or response to a stimulus; reproducibility of occurrence of a condition; and reproducibility of experimental results.
Observer Variation
The failure by the observer to measure or identify a phenomenon accurately, which results in an error. Sources for this may be due to the observer's missing an abnormality, or to faulty technique resulting in incorrect test measurement, or to misinterpretation of the data. Two varieties are inter-observer variation (the amount observers vary from one another when reporting on the same material) and intra-observer variation (the amount one observer varies between observations when reporting more than once on the same material).
Radiographic Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted
Legislation, Dental
Laws and regulations pertaining to the field of dentistry, proposed for enactment or recently enacted by a legislative body.
Odontometry
Measurement of tooth characteristics.
Bicuspid
Dental Enamel Hypoplasia
An acquired or hereditary condition due to deficiency in the formation of tooth enamel (AMELOGENESIS). It is usually characterized by defective, thin, or malformed DENTAL ENAMEL. Risk factors for enamel hypoplasia include gene mutations, nutritional deficiencies, diseases, and environmental factors.
Libraries, Dental
Technology, Radiologic
The application of scientific knowledge or technology to the field of radiology. The applications center mostly around x-ray or radioisotopes for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes but the technological applications of any radiation or radiologic procedure is within the scope of radiologic technology.
Diagnosis, Oral
Dental Pulp Cavity
The space in a tooth bounded by the dentin and containing the dental pulp. The portion of the cavity within the crown of the tooth is the pulp chamber; the portion within the root is the pulp canal or root canal.
Finger Joint
Evidence-Based Dentistry
An approach or process of practicing oral health care that requires the judicious integration of systematic assessments of clinical relevant scientific evidence, relating to the patient's oral and medical condition and history, with the dentist's clinical expertise and the patient's treatment needs and preferences. (from J Am Dent Assoc 134: 689, 2003)
Group Practice, Dental
Any group of three or more full-time dentists, organized in a legally recognized entity for the provision of dental care, sharing space, equipment, personnel and records for both patient care and business management, and who have a predetermined arrangement for the distribution of income.
Dental Pulp Diseases
Endodontic diseases of the DENTAL PULP inside the tooth, which is distinguished from PERIAPICAL DISEASES of the tissue surrounding the root.
Dental Prosthesis Design
The plan and delineation of dental prostheses in general or a specific dental prosthesis. It does not include DENTURE DESIGN. The framework usually consists of metal.
Tooth Injuries
Traumatic or other damage to teeth including fractures (TOOTH FRACTURES) or displacements (TOOTH LUXATION).
Dental Calculus
Dental Pulp Calcification
Malocclusion
Such malposition and contact of the maxillary and mandibular teeth as to interfere with the highest efficiency during the excursive movements of the jaw that are essential for mastication. (Jablonski, Illustrated Dictionary of Dentistry, 1982)
Radiology
Dentition
The teeth collectively in the dental arch. Dentition ordinarily refers to the natural teeth in position in their alveoli. Dentition referring to the deciduous teeth is DENTITION, PRIMARY; to the permanent teeth, DENTITION, PERMANENT. (From Jablonski, Dictionary of Dentistry, 1992)
Dental Cavity Preparation
An operation in which carious material is removed from teeth and biomechanically correct forms are established in the teeth to receive and retain restorations. A constant requirement is provision for prevention of failure of the restoration through recurrence of decay or inadequate resistance to applied stresses. (Boucher's Clinical Dental Terminology, 4th ed, p239-40)
Dental Bonding
An adhesion procedure for orthodontic attachments, such as plastic DENTAL CROWNS. This process usually includes the application of an adhesive material (DENTAL CEMENTS) and letting it harden in-place by light or chemical curing.
Dental Plaque Index
An index which scores the degree of dental plaque accumulation.
Tooth Crown
The upper part of the tooth, which joins the lower part of the tooth (TOOTH ROOT) at the cervix (TOOTH CERVIX) at a line called the cementoenamel junction. The entire surface of the crown is covered with enamel which is thicker at the extremity and becomes progressively thinner toward the cervix. (From Jablonski, Dictionary of Dentistry, 1992, p216)
Toothbrushing
The act of cleaning teeth with a brush to remove plaque and prevent tooth decay. (From Webster, 3d ed)
Thermoluminescent Dosimetry
Dental Restoration Failure
Endodontics
A dental specialty concerned with the maintenance of the dental pulp in a state of health and the treatment of the pulp cavity (pulp chamber and pulp canal).
Prosthodontics
Radiographic Magnification
Dental Cements
Substances used to bond COMPOSITE RESINS to DENTAL ENAMEL and DENTIN. These bonding or luting agents are used in restorative dentistry, ROOT CANAL THERAPY; PROSTHODONTICS; and ORTHODONTICS.
Carpal Bones
Odontogenesis
The process of TOOTH formation. It is divided into several stages including: the dental lamina stage, the bud stage, the cap stage, and the bell stage. Odontogenesis includes the production of tooth enamel (AMELOGENESIS), dentin (DENTINOGENESIS), and dental cementum (CEMENTOGENESIS).
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Dental Impression Technique
Procedure of producing an imprint or negative likeness of the teeth and/or edentulous areas. Impressions are made in plastic material which becomes hardened or set while in contact with the tissue. They are later filled with plaster of Paris or artificial stone to produce a facsimile of the oral structures present. Impressions may be made of a full complement of teeth, of areas where some teeth have been removed, or in a mouth from which all teeth have been extracted. (Illustrated Dictionary of Dentistry, 1982)
Periodontal Diseases
Pathological processes involving the PERIODONTIUM including the gum (GINGIVA), the alveolar bone (ALVEOLAR PROCESS), the DENTAL CEMENTUM, and the PERIODONTAL LIGAMENT.
Dental Abutments
Statistics, Nonparametric
A class of statistical methods applicable to a large set of probability distributions used to test for correlation, location, independence, etc. In most nonparametric statistical tests, the original scores or observations are replaced by another variable containing less information. An important class of nonparametric tests employs the ordinal properties of the data. Another class of tests uses information about whether an observation is above or below some fixed value such as the median, and a third class is based on the frequency of the occurrence of runs in the data. (From McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 4th ed, p1284; Corsini, Concise Encyclopedia of Psychology, 1987, p764-5)
Mouth Diseases
'Mouth diseases' is a broad term referring to various conditions that cause inflammation, infection, or structural changes in any part of the mouth, including the lips, gums, tongue, palate, cheeks, and teeth, which can lead to symptoms such as pain, discomfort, difficulty in chewing or speaking, and altered aesthetics.
Anatomic Landmarks
Age Determination by Teeth
A means of identifying the age of an animal or human through tooth examination.
Tooth Fractures
Alveolar Process
Tooth, Impacted
Dental Disinfectants
Skull Fractures
Fractures of the skull which may result from penetrating or nonpenetrating head injuries or rarely BONE DISEASES (see also FRACTURES, SPONTANEOUS). Skull fractures may be classified by location (e.g., SKULL FRACTURE, BASILAR), radiographic appearance (e.g., linear), or based upon cranial integrity (e.g., SKULL FRACTURE, DEPRESSED).
Pit and Fissure Sealants
Agents used to occlude dental enamel pits and fissures in the prevention of dental caries.
Tooth, Unerupted
Periodontics
Manifest Anxiety Scale
Dental Stress Analysis
Dental Deposits
Accumulations of microflora that lead to pathological plaque and calculus which cause PERIODONTAL DISEASES. It can be considered a type of BIOFILMS. It is subtly distinguished from the protective DENTAL PELLICLE.
Dentin
School Admission Criteria
Wrist Joint
The joint that is formed by the distal end of the RADIUS, the articular disc of the distal radioulnar joint, and the proximal row of CARPAL BONES; (SCAPHOID BONE; LUNATE BONE; triquetral bone).
Cariostatic Agents
Substances that inhibit or arrest DENTAL CARIES formation. (Boucher's Clinical Dental Terminology, 4th ed)
Physical Examination
Tooth Erosion
Pneumoconiosis
A diffuse parenchymal lung disease caused by inhalation of dust and by tissue reaction to their presence. These inorganic, organic, particulate, or vaporized matters usually are inhaled by workers in their occupational environment, leading to the various forms (ASBESTOSIS; BYSSINOSIS; and others). Similar air pollution can also have deleterious effects on the general population.
Streptococcus mutans
A polysaccharide-producing species of STREPTOCOCCUS isolated from human dental plaque.
Dental Pulp Capping
Application of a protective agent to an exposed pulp (direct capping) or the remaining thin layer of dentin over a nearly exposed pulp (indirect capping) in order to allow the pulp to recover and maintain its normal vitality and function.
Dentition, Permanent
Dental Veneers
The use of a layer of tooth-colored material, usually porcelain or acrylic resin, applied to the surface of natural teeth, crowns, or pontics by fusion, cementation, or mechanical retention.
Retrospective Studies
Studies used to test etiologic hypotheses in which inferences about an exposure to putative causal factors are derived from data relating to characteristics of persons under study or to events or experiences in their past. The essential feature is that some of the persons under study have the disease or outcome of interest and their characteristics are compared with those of unaffected persons.
Diagnostic Imaging
Solitary Pulmonary Nodule
A single lung lesion that is characterized by a small round mass of tissue, usually less than 1 cm in diameter, and can be detected by chest radiography. A solitary pulmonary nodule can be associated with neoplasm, tuberculosis, cyst, or other anomalies in the lung, the CHEST WALL, or the PLEURA.
Oral Surgical Procedures
Crowns
Tooth Apex
State Dentistry
Control, direction and financing of the total dental care of the population by a national government.
Geriatric Dentistry
The branch of dentistry concerned with the dental problems of older people.
Patient Care Planning
Unnecessary Procedures
Surgery, Oral
Dental Caries Activity Tests
Diagnostic tests conducted in order to measure the increment of active DENTAL CARIES over a period of time.