title: Esthetic techniques and restorative systems used in the second-year undergraduate dental curriculum.
abstract: Metal-free tooth-colored restorative systems for fabricating indirect intracoronal and extracoronal restorations have been developed because of patients' demand for superior esthetics. During the past decade, long-term clinical studies have demonstrated the success of many of these types of restorations in terms of function and esthetics. Ceramic veneers, all-ceramic crowns, ceramic onlays, and composite-resin inlays are becoming an integral part of contemporary clinical practice. The constant evolution in bonding techniques, adhesive systems, and cements plays a major role in the success of these metal-free restorations. In addition, home-bleaching procedures have become an integral part of the esthetically oriented dental practice. This article discusses the rationale, scientific basis, and implementation of a new undergraduate preclinical esthetics course for second-year dental students at the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center School of Dentistry.
authors.affiliation: Department of Prosthodontics, Louisiana State University School of Dentistry, New Orleans, LA 70119, USA. raiel@ix.netcom.com
authors.forename: Ariel J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Raigrodski
authors.forename: James D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Harrison
mesh_terms: D003442:Crowns; D003479:Curriculum; D003776:Dental Porcelain; D003793:Dental Restoration, Permanent; D003801:Dental Veneers; D003814:Dentistry, Operative / Q000193:education; D004497:Education, Dental; D004955:Esthetics, Dental; D006801:Humans; D007284:Inlays; D008145:Louisiana; D011476:Prosthodontics / Q000193:education*
chemical_list: D003776:Dental Porcelain