Break Down

A.M. - Art of Treatment Planning and Case Acceptance

Treatment planning and case acceptance are the primary elements that drive a dental practice, without them the clinician will not be doing much dentistry. Said differently, you can learn how to do the perfect tooth preparation, implant, endo, etc., but if you can't treatment plan, and get the treatment accepted, you won't be doing any of those procedures.

This presentation will cover several aspects of the treatment planning and case acceptance process, this will include the process of Filtering, which is learning how to align the experience you create for your patients with what they are expecting, leading to a much less stressful presentation process. A specific model of the communication style used in the case presentation will also be covered

In addition, the concept of using Decision Trees will be covered. Decision trees are road maps of the different treatment options, and what needs to be evaluated to choose an appropriate option for a specific problem. The presentation will cover decision trees on tooth position, gingival levels, and tooth replacement.

Learning Objectives:

You will learn

• How to present treatment plans to patients regardless of complexity in a way that is non-threatening and allows the patient control over the chosen plan
• How to treatment plan problems of tooth position, in a systematic way, what treatment methods are available and when to choose which method
• How to treatment plan problems of excessive gingival display, and uneven gingival levels, what wreatment methods are available and when to choose which method
• How to treatment plan missing anterior teeth from a single tooth to multiple missing teeth. Including how to decide between conventional fixed prosthesis, implants, or removable prosthetics

P.M. - Demystifying Occlusion

Without question occlusion has been one of the most confusing and overwhelming disciplines dentistry. The solution from a historical viewpoint has been to create rigid dogmatic approaches that have preached, if you do it my way, you will be successful, yet every one of those dogmas has had failures.

The good news is there has been a shift in our knowledge base about occlusion, the shift has led to different methods of thinking about and addressing occlusion, from both a diagnostic and treatment perspective. A major part of that shift has been to move away from the occlusion being the etiologic agent in muscle hyperactivity and occlusal destruction, to considering the development of the occlusion in a way that survives the patient's muscle activity levels.

In spite of our improved levels of knowledge about occlusion, there are still patients who present with high levels of occlusal risk. An example would be the patient you prepare a single molar crown on, reducing the preparation to create 1.5 to 2mm of occlusal clearance, only to discover when making the temporary the clearance is gone. Or the patient following a simple restoration or extraction who says their bite no longer fits.

This presentation will cover how to identifythese at risk patients in advance, and what options to exist to minimize the risk of treatment, in addition the role different occlusal appliances play during treatment will be reviewed. In addition, developing an occlusion for patients withhigh levels of muscle activity will be covered.

Learning Objectives:

You will learn

• How to evaluate a patient to determine their occlusal risk level prior to treatment.
• What options exist if a patient you are treating develops occlusal issues.
• What an occlusion that is designed to survive a patient 5 behavior looks like, compared to one trying to change their occlusal behavior
• The role, and choices, of occlusal appliances in diagnosing and helping to treat occlusal issues from significant wear to pain