Prosthodontic Solutions
Sometime around 2006 the powers that be I walked into class realize, much to the chagrin of at Arizona State University decided that in order to obtain any Bachelors of Science degree, a student must complete an upper-level bridge course. A bridge course is one which combines two or more academic disciplines into one course. For example, the bridge course I ultimately joined combined Biochemistry, Political Science, and Sociology. The official name of the course was Nanotechnology and Society.
I was more than a little annoyed about having to complete this course. Undergrad was in the bag and because of ASU's +/system I was sitting comfortable with a GPA north of 4.0. All of my required courses for Dental School were long since completed and the remaining classes were a formality. I was also juggling my last year of school with being a stay-at-home dad. Then this bridge course requirement appeared.
I walked into class to realize, much to the chagrin of the three assigned co-professors, that there were only four other students who had also enrolled in this particular class with me. Imagine The Breakfast Club, except instead of nerd, cheerleader, punk, eccentric, and jock; it was nerd, nerdy, nerdier, nerdiest, ubernerd. This was ASU, which at 80,000 students had the 2nd largest student body in the country. So at five students, we were introduced to a level of intimacy that, as nerds, we weren't quite comfortable with. The Breakfast Club indeed.
Nine years ago, Nanotechnology and the word "Nano" were hot. There was nano everything. If you had a product that was small, put "nano in front of it. Think iPod Nano. The literal meaning of nano is one billionth. It is most commonly used to measure both time and distance. One billionth of a second or one billionth of meter respectively. For curiosity's sake, fingernails grow one nanometer every second.
It became apparent that the reference to Nanotech was also used to hype this particular course. It was actually more focused on Technology and Society, which made it a much more interesting and purposeful course. The overall theme was how modern advancements in technology were being integrated into everyday life. More specifically how they were improving and going to improve the quality of life, how they were increasing and going to increase life expectancy, and how they would offer significant advantages to those who had access to them, etc.
Now remember, there are three professors...a biochemist, a political scientist, and a sociologist. All of whom reminded us weekly how prestigious and influential they were in their respective fields and how ludicrous it was that we, a mere five students, had intimate access to their collective intellect and academic prowess. Every class and topic had this pattern: The Biochemist introduces emerging or theoretical new tech advancement. The Sociologist then weighs in on said tech's social implications. Who will have access to it? For those who do have access, will it offer unfair advantages? Following the sociologist's input, the Political Scientist discusses how the new tech might be regulated by the government. What if this new tech got into the wrong hands? How could it be used by the bad guys? Iron Man 2 anyone?
We are always making improvements and approaching the threshold where the prosthetic is superior, but we still have a ways to go. However, I want the reader to take comfort in knowing that in the event of a dental situation in which teeth are compromised or lost, they have some amazing prosthodontic solutions.
Our presence was graced with several guest lecturers throughout the semester. One gave the presentation that will hopefully tie this whole rant together. He was from the University of Calgary and gave a presentation on enabling tech with emphasis on prosthetics. To make it brief, he believed that eventually tech would advance to the point that the prosthetic would be better than the real thing. In other words, patients who required prosthetic limbs, or artificial organs, etc. would be better off than they were with their original arm or heart. He believed that eventually tech would be so advanced that people could prophylactically pay for these prosthetics even though their original parts were functional and fine. In the context of our class, would the government allow this and how would this affect society and social divides?
This sounds crazy right? Believe it or not, this has been happening in the field of dentistry for...a long time. What the layperson refers to as crowns, bridges, veneers, implants, dentures, the dental professional knows as prosthodontics. "Prosth" meaning artificial or fake, and "don- tics" referring to the teeth. The field of Prosthodontics is broken into two parts: fixed and removable. It's simple; anything that can be taken in and out of the mouth is a removable prosthodontic appliance. All the rest are fixed prosthodontic appliances. Would anyone really prophylactically pay for these prosthetics even though their original parts were functional and fine? Yes, people have porcelain veneers placed everyday to improve the appearance of their teeth and smile. I also hear stories from WWII veterans that the military removed all of their teeth and put them in full dentures before sending them into the field. This prophylactically prevented any oral complications while the soldiers were in remote parts of the world.
Before I go any further, I 110% advocate that your God Given teeth are hands down the best option and all efforts should be made to keep and maintain them. We are always making improvements and approaching the threshold where the prosthetic is superior, but we still have a ways to go. However, I want the reader to take comfort in knowing that in the event of a dental situation in which teeth are compromised or lost, they have some amazing prosthodontic solutions. Crowns made right can look, feel, and function exactly like a real tooth. They now are made the same day that you need them. No more pesky temporary crowns and multiple visits. Implants placed with care can fully replace a missing tooth that would even fool your dentist, until he takes an x-ray of course.
What is most exciting for me is the advancements in implant retained dentures for patients missing all their teeth. The divisions of fixed and removable prosthodontics combine with fixed implants and removable dentures. The result is a much, much, much more stable denture restoring the realistic function that the patient misses and longs for. The result can bring the longtime denture wearer to tears. Too many of you out there are living with missing and broken teeth. I'll just chew on the other side you tell yourself. After a while the teeth on that side start breaking down and you develop jaw pain from imbalanced function. Technological advances in dental prosthetics have provided amazing solutions that are almost as good as the real thing.
That was my favorite course that I took while at Arizona State, but it was the only course that I did not receive an A mark. It was explained. to me that with only 5 students in this "difficult" higher level course the curve dictated one A, three B's, and one C. In other words they told me, "John, you're a nerd. But you weren't the 'ubernerd." I can live with that.
Read Prosthodontic Solutions and other Smile Montana articles by Dr. John F. Miller, DDS, in 406 Woman magazines.