#8 What I Learned Today

Essentials to Clinical Practice

Our focus in Essentials today was on communication techniques that can be used by a dental practitioner. We watched some movies and were asked to pick up on subtle cues which may be an indication of negative body language. An example would be a patient who tends to inch or crawl away from the dentist throughout the visit. This is an indication of anxiety; in such an instance it may be a good idea to slow down and allow the patient to regain his or her composure.

We also looked at the use of open-ended versus close-ended question during the recording of health history. Often there can be a discord between what a dentist is asking for, and how a patient responds. By asking open-ended questions, you are likely to obtain more information which can often shed more light on facts that may be important to diagnosis. This also allows for the dentist to ask further questions and help guide the patient into reporting information.

General and Oral Histology

General and Oral Histology focused on embryology. It is important for a dentist to understand the orgins and growth of hard and soft dental tissues. Embryology starts with fertilization of a sperm and egg cell, which grows consecutively from a zygote, to a morula, to a blastocyst, to an embryo. An inner cell mass develops into a bilaminar embryonic disc. Gatrulation turns the bilaminar disc into a trilaminar disc, which is the basis of the three germ layers: mesoderm, ectoderm, and endoderm. Enamel is derived from the ectoderm.

Later on in embryo development, one sees the formation of a neural tube, which gives rise to the neural crest and ultimately the central nervous system. The neural crest eventually folds to form pharyngeal arches. Pharyngeal arch #1 forms Meckel's cartilage, which eventually undergoes intramembranous ossificaiton and forms the manidble. The maxilla, trigeminal nerve, masticatory muscles, tongue, and oral epithelium also form from PA #1. Pharyngeal arch #2 forms the facial nerves and palatine tonsils.