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Currently in North America, there is an active dialogue going on about the state of predoctoral dental education and the need for curriculum change, innovation, and the adoption of contemporary, competency-based educational models. At the institutional level, curriculum committees struggle with requests from faculty to add new content to an overburdened didactic and clinic schedule. This article will describe potential solutions centering on the role and scope of the biomedical sciences in predoctoral dental education. The authors propose that dental educators and institutions reconsider the current admission prerequisites and curriculum content of the biomedical sciences in predoctoral programs. The proposed changes are intended to eliminate content redundancy between undergraduate and predoctoral dental education by integration of the biomedical sciences--in particular, biochemistry, microbiology, and physiology--into other clinically oriented coursework and learning experiences in the curriculum based on a pathophysiology model that fosters students' comprehension of the etiology of oral and systemic diseases encountered by the general dental practitioner. The authors explore how changes in the biomedical science prerequisites for dental school matriculation and associated modifications in curriculum focus and content would impact admissions testing, composition of national board exams, and strategies for teaching and learning within dental schools.

Demineralized freeze-dried bone (DFDB) in matrix form must be rehydrated with a carrier medium which allows for easy manipulation during periodontal surgery. The purpose of this study was to evaluate how human DFDB suspended in a polyol matrix affects new bone formation in the rat calvarium critical-sized defect (CSD) model. Fifty-five adult male Harlan Sprague-Dawley rats were assigned to 1 of 5 treatment groups: polyol, 100% DFDB, 47% DFDB/polyol, 47% DFDB, or an unfilled control. They were then placed into 8-m calvarial CSDs. The bone donor source company for the DFDB and DFDB/polyol groups was the same. Calvaria were harvested 10 weeks after surgery and evaluated histomorphometrically. The diameter of bone particles from the 3 groups containing DFDB was measured by scanning electron microscopy. There was no statistically significant difference in the percentage of bone fill between any of the groups, although the 100% DFDB group exhibited the most bone fill. The 47% DFDB/polyol and 47% DFDB groups had similar amounts of bone formation. The average size of the demineralized bone particles from the 100% DFDB group was significantly smaller than that of the other 2 groups containing DFDB. Adding a polyol to DFDB produced similar osseous regeneration in the rat calvarium defect model vs DFDB alone. Yet from a clinical standpoint, the polyol enhanced graft handling and stability. Graft particle size may have an effect on bone fill.

A 44-year-old woman presented with a chronically draining lesion on her cheek just lateral to the nasofacial sulcus. The lesion was refractory to treatment with oral antibiotics. Physical examination revealed poor dentition, and a panoramic radiograph demonstrated periapical abscesses in the maxillary right lateral incisor and canine. A diagnosis of cutaneous fistula of odontogenic origin was made, and the patient was treated with tooth extraction. The cutaneous fistula subsequently resolved. Intraoral examinations and radiographs are critical for making the diagnosis of cutaneous draining sinus tract of odontogenic origin. Many patients undergo unnecessary surgical therapies before having the correct diagnosis made, but root canal therapy or surgical extraction is the treatment of choice. A dental origin must be considered for any chronically draining sinus of the face or neck.

Objective: The purpose of this research project was to investigate the origin of the anatomical structures interpreted as trabecula bone on dental radiographic images., Study Design: Mandible sections were cut sagitally into halves. Trabecular bone was removed from each section in 4 stages. Following each stage, standardized radiographs were made, using CDR direct digital equipment. Trabecular bone in the resulting digital images was measured with 4 methods: (1) mean gray level; (2) the fractal dimension of the basic images; and, following morphological image processing, (3) counting the number of trabecular ends, intercepts, and segments (EIS) and (4) performing fractal analyses of the skeletonized images. Additionally, human visual interpretation of the collected images was conducted through a written examination. Repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to test for changes in measurements attributable to bone removal., Results: Repeated measures ANOVA indicated that the use of gray levels, fractal dimension, and morphologic operations quantifying using EIS or fractal analysis had similar performance and resulted in significant changes in measurements following bone removal ( P < .05). Visual differences were not always apparent between each stage of bone reduction. Radiometric and morphologic analysis showed measurable differences between stages., Conclusions: These results imply that the inner trabecula, the junctional trabecula, and the actual cortical housing all contribute to some extent to the radiograph, although changes in the radiographic architecture are not always clinically detectible.

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate the source of radiographic trabecular patterns by removing trabecular bone in four sequential steps from six cadaver mandible sections, radiographing the sections after each removal, and using four digital-image analysis methods to quantify any resulting changes to the radiographs., Methods: Mandible sections were cut sagittally into halves. Trabecular bone was removed from each section in four stages. Following each stage, standardized radiographs were taken, using direct digital equipment. Trabecular bone in the resulting digital images was measured with four methods. Mean gray level values (method 1) and cumulative percent histograms (method 2) were calculated from the raw data. Morphological image processing was used to skeletonize the trabecular structure, which was quantified by counting the number of trabecular ends and segments in the skeletonized images (method 3) and performing fractal analyses of the skeletonized images (method 4). Repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to test for changes in measurements attributable to bone removal., Results: Repeated measures ANOVA indicated that the use of gray levels, cumulative percent histograms, and morphologic operators resulted in highly significant changes in measurements following bone removal (P < 0.01). Ends and segments demonstrated similar performance, with changes highly significant over time (P < 0.01). Fractal analysis also resulted in highly significant changes over time (P < 0.01)., Conclusions: The analyses performed in this study demonstrated consistent image differences following the four steps of bone removal. These differences appeared whether light, cancellous bone or heavier endosteal bone was removed. These findings indicate that trabecular and endosteal bone combine to form the structure that most dentists identify as trabeculae on intraoral radiographs.

A cochlear implant (CI) converts mechanical sound energy into electrical signals that can be delivered to the cochlear nerve of profoundly deaf patients. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether electromagnetic interference with the CI occurs during the operation of the electric pulp tester, apex locator, electrocautery unit, electrosurgery unit, or panoramic radiograph machine. A mastoidectomy and cochleostomy were performed on a cadaver, and a CI was implanted. The dental devices were used intraorally, and the implant's circuitry was tested after each trial. A second CI was implanted in a human skull, which was then exposed to 50 panoramic radiographs, testing the implant's circuitry after each exposure. The probability of damage to the CI by any of the devices was negligible, except for the electrosurgery unit operated at level 7, which destroyed the CI's circuitry. Therefore, although the other devices seem safe, it is recommended that the electrosurgery unit not be used on a CI patient.