Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology

3 Units

The practice of dentistry includes a routine 90-second head and neck exam on all new patients as well as the proper identification and management any and all abnormalities of the oral cavity, salivary glands and jaw bones. In order to confidently and compassionately provide comprehensive care to the dental patient, the dentist must be aware of and qualified in managing diseases native to the oral and maxillofacial regions and systemic or dermatologic diseases with oral and maxillofacial manifestations. Many systemic conditions with oral and maxillofacial manifestations have been taught in your general pathology lectures and will at most be mentioned in passing due to time constraints. You will be introduced to approximately 300 diseases in this course. I want all of you to succeed in this challenging course. Success entails recognizing that oral and maxillofacial pathology is best thought of as a foreign language, and must be learned, practiced and rehearsed as such to achieve mastery and confidence.