Articulators in dental education and practice.

This study showed that only a small percentage of students continued to use or prescribe articulators after beginning their practices. Yet many restorative teaching programs have utilized semiadjustable articulators with the intent to stimulate a continued use of the instrument in practice. Perhaps the emphasis of instruction should not be placed upon a certain type of articulator for all restorative dentistry but instead upon the selection of an articulator dependent upon the degree of difficulty encountered with each patient. For example, a simple articulator may be used for simple treatment such as a single full gold crown in an otherwise healthy mouth with physiologic occlusion. This does not obviate the need for properly related master and opposing full-arch casts of high quality. Also, instruction is required which will assure that the new crown does not introduce occlusal interferences in centric relation, the intercuspal position, or laterotrusive and mediotrusive excursions. Emphasis should be taken away from teaching use of only one instrument. It should instead be directed toward an understanding of the basic principles of occlusion, cultivating an ability to differentiate the complexity of treatment, and then selecting an instrument which will provide the most practical and suitable result. An effort should be made to compensate for the instrument's limitations by careful clinical examination and correction.

PMID: 1066486 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]