Useful Laboratory Knowledge for Dental School

[smolovemily]

I had originally posted this in the pre-dental forum, but someone suggested that I move it here.

I am a pre-dental student planning to apply for the upcoming 2018 cycle. I work full time in a full service dental lab as an implant tech. I have very good working knowledge of CAD/CAM softwares and have designed multiple full arch cases with great success. In my current position, I select and place the proper lab analog, add soft tissue to the impression, help out with designing when needed, adjust/prep abutments, cement screw retained cases, fabricate seating jigs and verification jigs, apply gum composite to pmma provisionals, and do a final QC of implant cases before they leave the lab. I have also helped with staining and glazing, adjusting contacts and occlusion, and have waxed and pressed e.max crowns in the past. All of my current lab experience has been focused on fixed rather than removable restorations.

Sometimes I have down time between my duties, and I luckily have the freedom to shadow other departments and learn something new. My question is: what are the most important lab techniques that you used in dental school? Model work? Denture set ups? Diagnostic wax-ups? Just getting better with a hand piece? Prepping old models?

What lab techniques are you using now as a practicing dentist?

Thanks!

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[Miley Cyrus.]

Learn to mount casts, how to use facebow to mount, die trimming, setting denture teeth, making wax rims, learn how to make good stents and work with acyrlic...those are most important skills

 

[smolovemily]

Learn to mount casts, how to use facebow to mount, die trimming, setting denture teeth, making wax rims, learn how to make good stents and work with acyrlic...those are most important skills

Thanks for that! I should be able to practice all of those with the exception of a facebow. Which of those had the longest learning curve(s) for you?

 

[ysrebob]

That's an interesting question, and your interest in making the most of dental school (rather than just getting admitted) is admirable.

As a dental student, most of what you can learn in the lab won't help you much. The school won't expect any prior knowledge, and will require you to do most lab work in a very particular (not necessarily efficient) way. Any experience with waxing teeth will help you quite a bit early on in school, but maybe not much else.

As a future practicing dentist, though, there's a lot you can learn from your time in a lab...

At most schools, you graduate with only a very rudimentary understanding of dentures & removable, and will have to learn the rest "on the job." Anything you can pick up now in that area will serve you well later and make you less dependent on your lab as a dentist: as mentioned above, denture occlusal schemes, tooth setups, wax rims, acrylic repair, etc. Many dentists hate making full dentures or give up on them entirely, and part of that is inadequate training. Dentures and overdentures are a potentially big component of many practices. Your current job can give you a good head start there.

In Fixed, you should be able to pick up what you need to know in school. You will already be at an advantage in understanding the fixed implant restorative options better than most. Realize that outside of the implant department some of the impressions you're getting in probably don't represent ideal crown preps/RPD framework designs/whatever. Try to keep your personal standards high.

 

[wildshark16]

In Fixed, you should be able to pick up what you need to know in school. You will already be at an advantage in understanding the fixed implant restorative options better than most. Realize that outside of the implant department some of the impressions you're getting in probably don't represent ideal crown preps/RPD framework designs/whatever. Try to keep your personal standards high.

I am also applying for the 2018 cycle and curious about the lab work that will be done in Dental school.

However... I have no experience with lab work. So I am very confused what was just said. I was wondering if anyone could list out all the possible lab work procedures relevant to dental school (maybe formatted based on a certain criteria). Or if there is a site that lists this out. Please refrain from explaining the procedures just because it gets messy. Just think and list all the lab work procedures!

Purpose: Many times pre-dental apps bury their heads and say "I just want to get into dental school". I am at that stage, where I anxiously want to know exactly what I could be doing in dental school (know what I am getting myself into). Thus knowing all the lab work and researching them is something that will help alleviate this!

 

[Advance]

I am also applying for the 2018 cycle and curious about the lab work that will be done in Dental school.

However... I have no experience with lab work. So I am very confused what was just said. I was wondering if anyone could list out all the possible lab work procedures relevant to dental school (maybe formatted based on a certain criteria). Or if there is a site that lists this out. Please refrain from explaining the procedures just because it gets messy. Just think and list all the lab work procedures!

Purpose: Many times pre-dental apps bury their heads and say "I just want to get into dental school". I am at that stage, where I anxiously want to know exactly what I could be doing in dental school (know what I am getting myself into). Thus knowing all the lab work and researching them is something that will help alleviate this!

If you really want to know, there are textbooks on fixed and removable prosthodontics that details the lab techniques you will use in dental school.

Making a comprehensive list of every little thing we do in lab would be kind of tedious. @Miley Cyrus highlighted most of the important stuff though.


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[smolovemily]

That's an interesting question, and your interest in making the most of dental school (rather than just getting admitted) is admirable.

As a dental student, most of what you can learn in the lab won't help you much. The school won't expect any prior knowledge, and will require you to do most lab work in a very particular (not necessarily efficient) way. Any experience with waxing teeth will help you quite a bit early on in school, but maybe not much else.

As a future practicing dentist, though, there's a lot you can learn from your time in a lab...

At most schools, you graduate with only a very rudimentary understanding of dentures & removable, and will have to learn the rest "on the job." Anything you can pick up now in that area will serve you well later and make you less dependent on your lab as a dentist: as mentioned above, denture occlusal schemes, tooth setups, wax rims, acrylic repair, etc. Many dentists hate making full dentures or give up on them entirely, and part of that is inadequate training. Dentures and overdentures are a potentially big component of many practices. Your current job can give you a good head start there.

In Fixed, you should be able to pick up what you need to know in school. You will already be at an advantage in understanding the fixed implant restorative options better than most. Realize that outside of the implant department some of the impressions you're getting in probably don't represent ideal crown preps/RPD framework designs/whatever. Try to keep your personal standards high.

I've seen my fair share of less than ideal impressions/preps from both the implant and C&B side of things.
Exhibit A:

I will definitely have to start trying to learn more about removables. We send out most of our partials, so it will be difficult to get experience there. How much do they teach regarding clasp selection for partials in dental school? A lot of the doctors who I have designed under partial crowns for didn't seem to know much by way of what type of rests they wanted for a future partial denture. Do you think that's due to lack of practice or lack of teaching? Do you think custom trays would be important?

I snagged a few old models that I plan to prep and do a diag. wax up for more practice there.

 

[smolovemily]

I'm not sure how to change that picture size, but I didn't mean for it to show up that large. Oops!