Dental Students' Exposure to Periodontal and Implant Placement Surgeries in U.S. Dental Schools

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess nationwide trends in the exposure of dental students to periodontal and implant surgical procedures and to evaluate the potential factors that influence these clinical experiences. A 19‐item questionnaire was sent to all 64 directors of predoctoral periodontics in U.S. dental schools. In addition to gathering information on the percentage of students who perform surgical periodontics or implant placement procedures in each program, data on student research groups, periodontics residency programs, and periodontics faculty practices were collected. A total of 33 responses were received, for a response rate of 51.5%. Among the responding institutions, 97% and 45.5% allowed dental students to perform periodontal and dental implant placement surgeries, respectively, although only 26.4% and 15.2% of the dental class ended up performing periodontal and dental implant placement surgeries, respectively. Crown lengthening was the most commonly reported (84.8%) periodontal surgical procedure performed by dental students. A negative correlation was found between the presence of a periodontics residency program and dental students' placing dental implants, while the size of the residency program positively correlated with dental students' placing dental implants. Overall, a wide variation in the exposure of dental students to periodontal and dental implant placement surgical experiences was found. Future surveys should assess clinical procedures performed in other special‐ties to gain a broader picture of the experience students are gaining in these areas.

A descriptive analysis of predoctoral surgical requirements in US dental schools in 2020

“…Regarding periodontal surgery, our results are consistent with those found by Katsaros that dental students are largely involved in the diagnosis and nonsurgical management of periodontal diseases 8 . In the Katsaros study, 26.4% of responding schools reported dental students were allowed to perform periodontal surgery but only 6.1% required it.…”

“…Regarding periodontal surgery, our results are consistent with those found by Katsaros that dental students are largely involved in the diagnosis and nonsurgical management of periodontal diseases. 8 In the Katsaros study, 26.4% of responding schools reported dental students were allowed to perform periodontal surgery but only 6.1% required it. All of the participating programs allowed students to assist faculty or residents in these surgical procedures, and 69.7% required assisting as part of the curriculum.…”

“…7 In periodontics, a 2019 study by Katsaros found that it was most common for US dental students to be involved in diagnosis and nonsurgical management of periodontal diseases, with only 6.1% of programs requiring students to perform periodontal surgery. 8 CODA's Accreditation Standards for Dental Education Programs require graduates to be "competent in hard and soft tissue surgery," and schools are allowed to decide what metrics are used to measure this competency. 3 Our study began with a pilot sample of graduation requirement documents from six programs, in which we noted that the most robust surgical experience came from a program with a small class size.…”

“…In oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMS), clinical emphasis tends to be on local anesthetic, simple extractions, minor pre‐prosthetic surgery, oral mucosal biopsies, and recognizing indications for referral 7 . In periodontics, a 2019 study by Katsaros found that it was most common for US dental students to be involved in diagnosis and nonsurgical management of periodontal diseases, with only 6.1% of programs requiring students to perform periodontal surgery 8 …”

Knowledge and attitude in implant dentistry training courses amongst undergraduate dental students at Tehran University of Medical Sciences

“…Dental students' exposure to implant placement surgeries is especially low and mainly in the form of surgical assistance. 22 The learning experience of students directly affects their clinical decision-making. Students' perception from their learning experiences can also directly affect their learning quality and inclusion of dental implant treatments in their daily clinical practice.…”