Abstract: Understanding the anatomy of anterior and posterior teeth is important as the main aims of restorative dentistry are to restore the form, function and the aesthetics of damaged teeth. The anatomy of individual teeth is complex and infinitely variable, making it difficult to learn and challenging to teach. As tooth anatomy programs often occur in the early part of pre-clinical training it may also be difficult for clinical students to recall anatomical principles and apply them later to restorative treatment.
This paper is the first of two describing an innovative method of teaching and learning tooth anatomy that includes a program of step-by-step drawing exercises. The posterior tooth drawing exercises described here and the anterior versions in part two were originally designed for undergraduates studying tooth anatomy for the first time. Since their inception these exercises have also proved popular with experienced clinicians aiming to refine their dental anatomical knowledge for application in restorative procedures.
CPD/Clinical Relevance: Detailed understanding of tooth anatomy will help clinicians to plan, accurately and predictably, the restoration of posterior and anterior teeth.
Article
Most undergraduate curricula provide tooth anatomy teaching as a compulsory component of preclinical training.
Although anatomical complexity and variation make it a difficult subject to learn, most undergraduate programs aim to teach students basic shapes and predictable patterns so that they can recognize individual teeth and compare them to each other.
Often the teaching of tooth anatomy and clinical training are separated by months or even years, making it challenging for students to apply previously learned anatomical principles to restorative procedures.1
If tooth anatomy is not mastered during undergraduate training there is a risk that students may graduate with limited skills in the accurate shaping of direct restorations and in designing fixed and removable prosthodontic restorations so that they integrate functionally and aesthetically with the residual dentition.
In 2009, a review of the second year undergraduate curriculum at the University of Birmingham School of Dentistry provided the opportunity to redesign tooth anatomy teaching with a greater restorative focus. This paper is the first of a two-part series describing the innovative tooth drawing exercises that form an integral component of the program.
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