Periodontal Concepts for The Modern Dental Practice: From Diagnosis to Long Term Maintenance Care

Course overview

This on-demand self-study course will clarify diagnosis and treatment planning to help hygienists and dentists feel comfortable with stabilizing periodontal conditions and creating a predictable foundation for successful ongoing maintenance and restorative care. The topics covered will include diagnosis, prognosis, minimally invasive anti-microbial methods, osseous concepts, role of trauma from the occlusion, and predictable methods for patient motivation that will provide a key cornerstone for long-term successful maintenance care. This course is designed to enhance or develop skills in basic periodontal diagnosis and treatment planning, while at the same time showing the long term potential for a non-surgical minimally invasive approach. An evidenced based method for minimally invasive management of moderate to advanced periodontal infection will be presented. We will discuss why targeting the bacteria and not the pocket is oftentimes the best approach. We will explore ongoing maintenance, an obvious key factor for long-term success, and introduce methods that patients can manage at home without being too complicated. With this approach compliance is typically improved versus traditional efforts of getting people to floss, which only disappoints clinicians when patients do not comply. In addition, see how applying principles of periodontal soft tissue grafting can be diagnosed at a typical hygiene appointment. Different types of soft tissue grafting and their relationship to recession and obtaining root coverage will be discussed. You will also learn ways patients can obtain soft tissue coverage of those maxillary cuspids that are either esthetically displeasing or sensitive.