Dentistry
Summary
Dentistry integrates prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diseases affecting the teeth, supporting tissues and adjacent regions of the head and neck. It encompasses multiple specialties—from restorative and prosthetic rehabilitation to endodontics, periodontics, orthodontics, oral surgery and paediatric care—underpinned by advances in biomaterials, imaging, digital workflows and biological therapies. Contemporary practice emphasises minimally invasive interventions, personalised risk assessment and preservation of natural tissues, supported by computer-aided design and manufacturing (CAD-CAM), three-dimensional imaging and additive manufacturing. Tissue engineering and growth-factor delivery aim to regenerate dentine, pulp, periodontal ligament and alveolar bone, while novel antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory strategies seek to modulate host responses without broad-spectrum antibiotics. Across the globe, efforts focus on improving access, reducing treatment burden, enhancing patient comfort and sustaining oral health as an integral component of systemic well-being.
Research from Nature Portfolio
High-fidelity in vivo comparisons of three leading intraoral scanners report median trueness values below 20 μm for dentate arches, with slightly reduced accuracy in edentulous or implant-bearing models. These data guide selection of devices for specific restorative and prosthetic applications.
A mussel-inspired mucoadhesive film has been engineered for wet buccal tissues by incorporating catechol-rich polymers and polydopamine nanoparticles. The film forms covalent and non-covalent bonds with mucin, enhances transmucosal drug transport three- to six-fold and accelerates mucosal healing in animal models, offering a versatile platform for local therapy.
In a tooth-replantation model, topical pretreatment with platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB) markedly reduced ankylosis and restored organised periodontal ligament architecture. PDGF-BB promoted fibroblast proliferation and migration, modulated Wnt/β-catenin signalling and yielded functional ligament regeneration with mechanical strength reaching 76 percent of normal within three weeks.
Research from all publishers
A multicentre randomised trial in prepubertal children with maxillary deficiency compared miniscrew-anchored maxillary protraction against untreated controls. A hybrid hyrax expander anchored to the infrazygomatic crest and mandibular miniscrews achieved an average forward displacement of 4.3 mm, controlled mandibular growth and vertical plane stability without surgical anchorage.
Three-dimensional bioprinting of polycaprolactone scaffolds enriched with bioactive glass or hyaluronic acid has shown enhanced mechanical strength, surface topography and hydration, fostering up-regulation of odontogenic markers in dental pulp stem cells. Bilayer constructs support tailored pulp-dentin regeneration with controlled porosity and bioactivity.
Robotic-assisted dental implant systems have demonstrated improved placement accuracy compared with freehand techniques, notably reducing depth and angulation errors. Such platforms offer enhanced consistency for novice surgeons and support minimally invasive, template-guided protocols for implant positioning.
Dentistry publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in dentistry across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Intraoral scanner (IOS): A handheld device that captures three-dimensional digital impressions of teeth and soft tissues for CAD-CAM workflows.
Trueness: The closeness of agreement between a scanned model and the actual anatomy, reflecting accuracy of dimensional reproduction.
Precision: The consistency of repeated scans under identical conditions, expressed as the variability among datasets.
Mucoadhesive film: A polymeric patch engineered to adhere to moist mucosal surfaces via covalent and non-covalent interactions for sustained drug delivery.
Scaffold: A porous three-dimensional biomaterial that supports cell adhesion, proliferation and tissue development in regenerative applications.
PDGF-BB (platelet-derived growth factor-BB): A growth factor that stimulates cell proliferation, migration and angiogenesis, used to promote soft-tissue and ligament regeneration.
Periodontal ligament: The fibrous connective tissue that anchors teeth to the alveolar bone and absorbs occlusal forces.
Osseointegration: The direct structural and functional connection between living bone and the surface of an implant without intervening fibrous tissue.
References
- Introduction to Dentistry and Oral Health.
- Trueness and precision of intraoral scanners in the maxillary dental arch: an in vivo analysis. Scientific Reports (2020).
- A mussel-inspired film for adhesion to wet buccal tissue and efficient buccal drug delivery. Nature Communications (2021).
- Platelet-derived growth factor-BB regenerates functional periodontal ligament in the tooth replantation. Scientific Reports (2022).
- Dentofacial effects of miniscrew-anchored maxillary protraction on prepubertal children with maxillary deficiency: a randomized controlled trial. Progress in Orthodontics (2023).
- 3D Bioprinting of Polycaprolactone-Based Scaffolds for Pulp-Dentin Regeneration: Investigation of Physicochemical and Biological Behavior. Polymers (2021).
- The evolution of robotics: research and application progress of dental implant robotic systems. International Journal of Oral Science (2024).
About these summaries
This Nature Research Intelligence Topic summary is created with the cited references and a large language model. We take care to ground generated text with facts, and have systems in place to gain human feedback on the overall quality of the process in line with our AI principles. We strive to create accurate and useful summaries for people unfamiliar with the research topic and that supports this goal. These pages are a beta release and will be updated as we learn how best to help people gain value from a research topic summary.
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