Dentistry in the United States
In the United States, dentists earn either a D.D.S. (Doctor of Dental Surgery) or D.M.D.(Doctor of Dental Medicine) degree. There are 54 Accredited Dental schools in the United States requiring 4 years of post graduate study (except for one unique 3 year program at the University of the Pacific). Most applicants to dental school have attained at least a B.S. or B.A. degree, however, a small percentage are admitted after only fulfilling specific prerequisite courses. So unlike many other countries, it can take more then 8 years to become a dentist. ( List of U.S. dental schools) The degrees D.D.S. and D.M.D. require equivalent education and are identical in every way. The difference relates to the history involved in the division of medicine and surgery in medical practice. There has been a recent movement to include a 5th year of education that focuses on purely practical training in the clinical setting. In at least one state, a state dental license can be received without taking the licensing exam (State Board Exam) upon completing this additional year of training. Dentists are licensed and regulated by the state in which the they practice. The license is only valid in the issuing state and is non-transferable. There are many cooperative agreements between states that allow recognition of another state’s license so as to procure a license either via “licensure by credentials” or “licensure by reciprocity.”
A dentist may go on for further training in a dental specialty which require an additional 1 to 7 years of post-doctoral training. There are 9 recognized dental specialties. They are Endodontics(root canal treatment), Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, Pediatric Dentistry, Periodontics(gums), Prosthodontics(complicated dental reconstruction), Orthodontics(braces), Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery(tooth removal and surgery of the oral and related structures), and Dental Public Health. There is no specialty in esthetic dentistry or implantology, and no additional training is required for a dentist to make the claim of being an esthetic or cosmetic dentist.
Any general dentist may perform those procedures designated within the enumerated specialties if they deem themselves competent. Many general dentists train in certain aspects of the above specialties such as the placement and restoration of dental implants, advanced prosthodontics and endodontics, and have limited or heavily focused their practices to these areas. When a general dentist performs any procedure that falls within the realm of a specialty, they are expected to perform with the same level of expertise as a certified specialist and are legally held to such standards with respect to any issues of malpractice.
In the United States, dentists earn either a D.D.S. (Doctor of Dental Surgery) or D.M.D.(Doctor of Dental Medicine) degree. There are 54 Accredited Dental schools in the United States requiring 4 years of post graduate study (except for one unique 3 year program at the University of the Pacific). Most applicants to dental school have […]
In the United States, dentists earn either a D.D.S. (Doctor of Dental Surgery) or D.M.D.(Doctor of Dental Medicine) degree. There are 54 Accredited Dental schools in the United States requiring 4 years of post graduate study (except for one unique 3 year program at the University of the Pacific). Most applicants to dental school have […]
In the United States, dentists earn either a D.D.S. (Doctor of Dental Surgery) or D.M.D.(Doctor of Dental Medicine) degree. There are 54 Accredited Dental schools in the United States requiring 4 years of post graduate study (except for one unique 3 year program at the University of the Pacific). Most applicants to dental school have […]
In the United States, dentists earn either a D.D.S. (Doctor of Dental Surgery) or D.M.D.(Doctor of Dental Medicine) degree. There are 54 Accredited Dental schools in the United States requiring 4 years of post graduate study (except for one unique 3 year program at the University of the Pacific). Most applicants to dental school have […]
This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 6th, 2007 at 1:05 and is filed under school of dentistry. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.