Fundamental Principles

So, what are the foundational principles of dental technology? Whether it be fixed, removable, or a combination of both—including implant-supported restorations—understanding from macro and micro perspectives how the entire oral environment works will help you navigate the functionality of the oral environment and the prosthesis you are aiming to achieve. Those perspectives include the human being and their face, musculature, tooth arrangement, and occlusion, as well as biomechanics, tooth morphology, inclinations, and height of contours, just to name a few.

One core principle that trumps all others and must be adhered to is that "Form MUST follow Function." You must first achieve proper function in the patient's oral situation, and only then focus on the form or esthetics and so on; similar to the example of building a house, if the prosthetic is visually appealing but does not function properly, the prosthesis is meaningless and will quickly fail. With regard to biomechanics, restorative material selection can make or break the success of the case, and its most simplistic example is the location, as well as the hardness of a material, which can affect the outcome of the case. Will it function well with the oral mechanism or create issues caused by material selection, and so on?

There are ample opportunities to learn these fundamental principles from formal educational courses that are available in person or online, as well as journal articles, books, and seminars; equally important is for laboratory owners and managers to strongly encourage their technician talent to immerse themselves further and emphasize the importance of doing so. Similarly, it would behoove the laboratory to provide mechanisms within the building to learn and review these principles on an ongoing basis with all involved in the form of lunch-and-learns, junior technicians shadowing more seasoned technicians, dental fun trivia challenges, and more. At the end of the day, these efforts will lead to better outcomes, making the laboratory's clients and their patients happy, and thereby leading to the laboratory's success.

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