Introduction During the COVID‐19 pandemic, dental schools were required to reformat their curricula to accommodate regulations mandated to protect the health of students and faculty. For students enrolled in the Operative Dentistry preclinical courses at the Harvard School of Dental Medicine (HSDM), this modified curriculum included frontloading the course with lectures delivered remotely, followed by in‐person laboratory exercises of learned concepts. The aim of this article was to determine the impact that the modifications had on student performance and student self‐evaluation capabilities. Materials and methods Thirty‐eight students were introduced to this restructured course. Their performance in a final multiple‐choice (MC) examination, four preclinical laboratory competency assessments (class II amalgam preparation and restoration, class III composite preparation and restoration) and their self‐assessment of these preclinical competency assessments were then compared with the pre‐COVID pandemic (P‐CP) classes from years 2014 to 2019 ( n = 216 students). Linear regressions were performed to determine differences in mean faculty scores, self‐assessment scores, student‐faculty score gaps (S‐F gaps) and absolute S‐F gaps seen between the class impacted by the pandemic and the P‐CP classes. Results The results demonstrated that students during the COVID‐19 pandemic (D‐CP) had a higher average faculty score in all four preclinical laboratory competency assessments and in the final MC examination. In addition, the S‐F gap was smaller in this cohort as compared with the P‐CP classes. Conclusion Despite the challenges of restructuring the preclinical curricula, D‐CP students performed better than their P‐CP predecessors in multiple facets of this Operative Dentistry course including self‐assessment accuracy.

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Dental fluorosis is a common disorder caused by excessive fluoride intake during tooth development. The esthetic consequences of dental fluorosis can negatively affect oral health-related quality of life and have lasting psychosocial effects. In severe cases, where the fluorosed enamel is prone to chipping, flaking, and developing caries, minimally invasive procedures are ineffectual and a more substantial restorative approach is required to restore optimal function and esthetics. However, no definitive guidelines exist for the management and treatment of severe dental fluorosis due to the limited evidence available in the literature. This case report describes the full-mouth rehabilitation of a patient with severe dental fluorosis utilizing adhesively bonded all-ceramic crowns, veneers, and overlays. The successful follow-up on this case indicates that adhesively bonded restorations may provide a viable option in the functional and esthetic management of severely fluorosed dentition.

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