Thurs., Jan. 24 Clinic

My AM pt. was a IB and needed a sealant. So, this was the perfect opportunity to do 2 PEs: Diagnodent and Sealant! I was very thankful for this, because I wasn't successful doing these PEs on my first pt. of this semester. So much of what is done clinically improves just by doing it. Later, I asked Dr. Anderton some questions I had about diagnodent and sealants. He told me that he didn't get too excited about higher numbers on the diagnodent unless they were over 50, which was interesting to hear since this contradicts what the instruction sheet said. Then, I asked about whether caries is entombed by a sealant, and he said that if the caries is only in the enamel, a sealant will prevent it from spreading. However, he said that if the decay is in the dentin, it will not. I think the DDSs are an excellent resource to expand on our knowledge.

My PM pt. had cancelled the night before, and I had exhausted all my "patient possibilities," so I wasn't sure what would happen, but as they often do, a patient appeared. I had a IA and was able to add to my sealant experience once again. Yes!