title: Increasing the medical training of dentists.
abstract: Dentists are entering complex diagnostic fields such as facial pain; carrying out advanced oral, periodontal, and maxillofacial procedures; and treating oral diseases by prescribing drugs with profound systemic effects. Concurrently, the population is living longer by taking multiple medications and undergoing sophisticated surgical procedures. The modern dentist requires more extrinsic and practical medical training to deal with these realities. This review advocates that courses in physical and laboratory diagnosis, pathophysiology, and internal medicine be expanded in the dental school curriculum and supplemented by practical clinical experience.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, School of Dental Medicine.
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Greenberg
mesh_terms: D003479:Curriculum; D004497:Education, Dental / Q000639:trends*; D004501:Education, Medical; D006801:Humans; D014481:United States