Portal:Dentistry

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The Dentistry Portal

A dentist performing oral surgery.
Dentistry is the art and science of prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of conditions, diseases, and disorders of the oral cavity, the maxillofacial region, and its associated structures as it relates to human beings. Dentists, with the aide of other dental auxiliaries, frequently uses X-rays and other equipment to ensure correct diagnosis and treatment planning. Treatment may include filling dental cavities, removing the nerves of teeth during root canal treatment, treating diseases of the gingiva, removing teeth during extractions, and replacing lost teeth with bridges, dentures, and implants. Anesthesia is often used in any treatment that might cause pain. Teeth may be filled with gold, silver, amalgam, porcelain. Other diseases of the mouth treated in dentistry include trench mouth and periodontitis.

Prevention of disease is an important aspect to dentistry. Regular oral hygiene is recommended, and the most common instruments including toothbrushes and dental floss. Limiting the frequency of sugar consumption is usually stressed. The dental significance of fluorides was discovered in the 1930s. Since then water fluoridation and topical applications of fluoride have become a focus in the prevention of tooth decay.

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Cevical decay on a premolar.
Dental caries, also described as tooth decay or dental cavities, is an infectious disease which damages the structures of teeth. The disease can lead to pain, tooth loss, infection, and, in severe cases, death. An estimated 90% of schoolchildren worldwide and most adults have experienced cavities, with the disease being most prevalent in Asian and Latin American countries and least prevalent in African countries. In the United States, dental caries is the most common chronic childhood disease, being at least five times more common than asthma. It is the primary cause of tooth loss in children. Between 29% and 59% of adults over the age of fifty experience caries.

There are numerous ways to classify dental caries, but the risk factors and development among distinct types of caries remain largely similar. Tooth decay is caused by certain types of acid-producing bacteria which cause the most damage in the presence of fermentable carbohydrates such as sucrose, fructose, and glucose. The resulting acidic levels in the mouth affect teeth because a tooth's special mineral content causes it to be sensitive to low pH. Depending on the extent of tooth destruction, various treatments can be used to restore teeth to proper form, function, and aesthetics, but there is no known method to regenerate large amounts of tooth structure. Instead, dental health organizations advocate preventative measures, such as regular oral hygiene and dietary modifications, to avoid dental caries.

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Cross-section of a tooth, showing enamel and dentin.
Credit: Dozenist

Dentin is the part of a tooth underneath enamel or cementum. It is formed by the odontoblasts of the dental pulp in a process known as dentinogenesis. Dentin has a complex structure, with microscopic channels, called dentinal "tubules," radiating outward through the dentin from the pulp cavity to the exterior cementum or enamel border. These tubules have different configurations in different species and ranges between 0.8 and 2.2 micrometers.

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Black hairy tongue.
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Fields of practice Instruments Oral hygiene Pathology
Restorative dentistry Teeth Tooth anatomy Tooth development
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