The Scientist-Clinician in the Diagnosis and Long-Term Stabilization of Periodontitis

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Conflict of Interest Disclosure
Casey Hein & Associates, LLC received unrestricted educational grants from Florida Probe and Perio Protect to assist in the development of this course and the ability to provide complimentary access to this course along with awarding CDE credit. I want to thank Florida Probe, and Perio Protect for their generosity in supporting this program.

This course is divided into 12 parts which vary in length between 7 and 24 minutes. Designed for busy professionals, you can take one section at a time. It’s all up to you! At the end of each section, there will be a practice/quiz question. You might want to pay attention because these questions will be on the course post-test. Once all the sections have been completed, you’ll be ushered to the post-test. Upon successful completion of the post-test, you’ll have immediate access to your CDE certificate (aka Verification of Attendance). You’ve got this!

Suggested Audience: Dentists, dental hygienists
CDE credits awarded: 4.0 hours upon successful completion of the post test
CDE Certificate Requirements: In order to receive your Verification of Attendance (CDE certificate) you must correctly answer 9 out of the 12 questions in the Quiz that follows at the end of the course.

How do I implement the new classification guidelines to diagnose periodontal disease?
Does the threat that periodontitis poses to systemic health factor into diagnosis of periodontitis?
Am I underdiagnosing or missing the opportunity to diagnose and treat periodontitis in its earliest stages?
Am I accurately performing a periodontal examination?

In 2017, a new way of thinking about the diagnosis and long-term stability of periodontitis was introduced. The American Academy of Periodontology and the European Federation of Periodontology convened a workshop to update the periodontal disease classification system and to develop a diagnostic framework that aligned with current evidence and new insights relative to the etiology of periodontal and peri‐implant diseases and conditions. With this new classification system, we finally have a framework for evaluating periodontitis based not only on the severity of the disease (as in the past), but also its rate of progression, which is often influenced by modifiable risk factors, that are local, systemic, and environmental. The new classification system also incorporates the potential for periodontal treatment to influence the course of an inflammatory-driven disease or condition in a patient. So, in contrast to the previous classification system, and cookie-cutter approaches to treatment, this new way of diagnosing and accessing stability requires more critical thinking, and that thinking must be grounded in science. Enter the scientist-clinician. To operationalize the new classification system, we need to get comfortable with assessing dynamic changes in the rate of periodontal disease progression, and understanding how systemic factors influence the disease trajectory, and vice versa- both which require more critical thinking than what we’ve experienced in the past. The new classification system also requires us to use our knowledge of periodontal-systemic science, and clinical judgement. For those dentists and dental hygienists who are serious about applying the science of periodontal-systemic medicine, the term, scientist-clinician, is entirely apropos.

Learning Objectives:

Upon successful completion of this course, clinicians will be able to:

Explain the biological mechanisms implicated in the inflammatory pathway linking periodontal disease to cardiovascular disease, diabetes, pneumonia complications of pregnancy and other links under investigation.
Discuss cost-benefit studies that demonstrate how periodontal treatment in high-risk patients may lower medical costs.
Identify patients who are inflammatory primed and determine how this may influence their risk or progression of periodontal deterioration.
Detect the earliest stages of periodontal disease.
Identify patients’ periodontal risk factors and implement continuous risk assessment to assess periodontal stability.
Recognize medications that may influence a patient’s diagnosis, treatment, and long-term stability of periodontitis.
Describe how genetic predisposition to periodontitis influences the risk of periodontal disease progression.
Diagnose the extent, severity, and rate of progression (staging and grading) of cases of periodontitis utilizing the 2017 guidelines from Classification of Periodontal & Peri-Implant Diseases and Conditions.
Accurately perform a periodontal evaluation.
Implement an adjunctive therapy that helps to stabilize patients during periodontal maintenance.
Identify the things that may be hijacking your diagnosis of early-stage periodontitis.
Determine which cases in your practice might benefit from referral to a periodontist.

For a deeper dive with Casey, sign up for the post-course “Implementation Workshop”. This workshop provides a relaxed learning environment to accelerate understanding of what was introduced in the online companion course, “The Scientist-Clinician in Diagnosis and Long-Term Stabilization of Periodontitis”. This allows clinicians and staff to do a ‘deep dive’ into the new periodontitis classification system (2017), and operationalize this diagnostic framework, according to individual practices’ unique settings. Workshop participants will become more proficient in performing periodontal exams and understanding how systemic factors influence the rate of periodontal deterioration – both of which requires more critical thinking than what we’ve practiced in the past. For those clinicians and staff who want to improve clinical outcomes of periodontal treatment and recare, who want to better apply the science of periodontal-systemic medicine, and who would like to experience practice growth, this implementation workshop is a must.

Collateral Materials & Supplemental Resources

Award of Continuing Dental Education Credit

CDE Credit: 4 hours upon successful completion of the post test

Casey Hein & Associates is designated as an Approved PACE Program Provider FAGD/MAGD. Credit approval does not imply acceptance by a state or provincial board of dentistry or AGD endorsement. The current term of approval extends from December 1, 2019 to November 30, 2025. Provider #337890