Peri-implant disease education and diagnosis in the pre-doctoral curriculum

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess how pre-doctoral periodontal programs in the United States of America are educating their dental students regarding the management of peri-implant diseases and secondarily, to determine if a current standard of teaching exists. Methods and Materials: Electronic surveys were distributed to pre-doctoral program directors across 57 dental schools in the United States via a secure online survey system. The survey consisted of 19 questions pertaining to curriculum structure involving didactic and clinical management of peri-implant diseases. Results: A total of 25 program directors (44%) responded, and data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The results indicated a lack of standardization of pre-doctoral didactic and clinical curriculum among dental schools. Conclusions: Data pooled from 25 pre-doctoral periodontal programs in the United States show that there is currently no standardization in the dental school curriculum related to the didactic and clinical management of peri-implant diseases. The development of standardized content is recommended to assist program directors in assessing and enhancing educational experiences for dental students on the management of peri-implant diseases.