{"id":1067,"date":"2019-11-12T15:27:18","date_gmt":"2019-11-12T15:27:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/?p=1067"},"modified":"2019-11-12T15:27:19","modified_gmt":"2019-11-12T15:27:19","slug":"exams-in-dentistry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/exams-in-dentistry\/","title":{"rendered":"EXAMS IN DENTISTRY"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Diagnosis is the\nkey to success in any area of medicine, including dentistry. Proper diagnosis\nleads to success in treatment. In dentistry, there are different exams used at\ndifferent times of a patient\u2019s \u201ccareer\u201d at the dentist. I would like to clarify\nsome of these in this column.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Comprehensive\nOral Evaluation is the term used to describe the initial exam with a new\ndentist. For insurance purposes, it is usually paid once in the lifetime of a\npatient with a single dentist. If a patient does not see the dentist on a\nregular basis it may be paid for once every 5 years. This evaluation usually is\na more detailed exam performed by the dentist. It includes charting of the\npatient\u2019s teeth (including present\/missing teeth and existing restorations), a\nperiodontal exam (to determine the health of the gums and bone that support the\nteeth), a visual oral cancer screening (a detailed exam of the soft tissues to\ncheck for any abnormalities), a review of the patient\u2019s health history\n(including familial history, medications, etc.), and a general occlusal exam\n(an evaluation of how the teeth, muscles and TMJ joints are working together).\nThis exam is used as the baseline for where a patient starts in an individual\ndental practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Periodic Oral\nEvaluation is the exam that is done in conjunction with visits to the\nhygienist. For insurance purposes, this exam is usually covered every 6 months.\nIt is separate from the \u201ccleaning\u201d of the teeth. This exam generally looks at\nthe same areas as the previous exam described, but in less detail. The results\nof this exam are compared to the baseline exam that has been previously\ncompleted. Although the exam must be overseen by a dentist, many of the parts\nof the exam may be performed by the hygienist and reviewed by the dentist. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Limited Oral\nEvaluation is the term used to describe an unscheduled visit to the dentist,\nusually for when a patient presents with a problem. For example, if a patient\npresents with the chief complaint of a toothache, this exam covers the reading\nof any necessary dental x-rays and diagnosis of the problem. It may result in\nthe scheduling of the patient for treatment, or referral to a specialist. Different\ninsurance companies have various guidelines for how often they will pay for\nthese visits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then there is the\nunderutilized Occlusal Analysis. The reason it is underutilized is because\ninsurance companies generally do not cover it. This is unfortunate, because it\nserves a very distinct and important role in the diagnosis of many issues that\npatients encounter. Temporomandibular joint (TMJ) issues, muscular problems,\ntooth wear\/fracture and pre-prosthetic evaluation are all things that could\nbenefit from the occlusal analysis. It is generally a combination of a clinical\nexam and an evaluation of models of a patient\u2019s teeth, which are mounted on an\ninstrument which simulates the patient\u2019s jaw movements. There are many\nimportant things that can be learned from completing this detailed study of the\nbite relationship, which can lead to much greater success in treating certain\npatients. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. St. Clair maintains\na private dental practice in Rowley and Newburyport dedicated to health-centered\nfamily dentistry. If there are certain topics you would like to see written about\nor questions you have please email them to him at jpstclair@stclairdmd.com<\/a>.\nYou can view all previously written columns at www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Diagnosis is the key to success in any area of medicine, including dentistry. Proper diagnosis leads to success in treatment. In dentistry, there are different exams used at different times of a patient\u2019s \u201ccareer\u201d at the dentist. I would like to clarify some of these in this column. The Comprehensive Oral Evaluation is the term used to describe the initial exam with a new dentist. For insurance purposes, it is usually paid once in the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1067","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1067","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1067"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1067\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1073,"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1067\/revisions\/1073"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1067"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1067"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1067"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}