Referral Patterns Among Dental Students for Implant-Related Surgical Procedures

Implant dentistry is an ever-evolving landscape amongst the different specialties in the field of dentistry.  The surgical procedures and restoration of dental implants is more commonly taught in dental schools with an increased understanding of these procedures amidst graduating dental students.  The purpose of our survey was to evaluate dental students’ perception for referral of common surgical procedures associated with implant dentistry among the two most common surgical specialties of oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMS) and periodontics.  A survey consisting of 10 multiple-choice questions was distributed to third year dental students at the University of Iowa.  The questions were based on referral patterns for extraction of teeth, placement of immediate, anterior and posterior implants as well as bone and soft tissue grafting associated with implants.  All surveys were anonymous with no identifying information and all answers were confidential.  The results of the surveys were recorded for statistical analysis of the answers to evaluate planned referral patterns.   The results suggest that OMS is the preferred surgical specialty for the extraction of teeth (erupted and impacted, 88.20% and 98.68%, respectively) as well as for placement of the majority of implants and bone grafts.  The survey results showed that 61.84% of the third year dental students prefer referral to a periodontist for soft tissue grafting.  This was in contrast to only 36.84% of these students preferring referral to a periodontist for bone grafting.  Anterior implant placement had a lower referral pattern to OMS (56.58%) than did either posterior implants (72.37%) or immediate implants (72.37%).  The results of this survey suggest that OMS is the preferred specialty for referral of tooth extraction and implant related surgical procedures other than soft tissue grafting.  However, evaluation of referral patterns amongst students as they progress throughout their pre-doctoral education and into their own practices would be beneficial to evaluate what oral and maxillofacial surgery could change during their education process to determine when referrals are indicated.

References:

1. Jarosz K, Ziccardi V, Aziz S, Sue-Jiang S: Dental Student Perceptions of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery as a Specialty. J Oral Maxillofac Surg 71:965-973, 2013
2. Cottrell D, Reebye U, Blyer S, Hunter M: Referral Patterns of General Dental Practitioners for Oral Surgical Procedures. J Oral Maxillofac Surg 65:686-690, 2007