The Role of Devices for Imitating the Movements of the Lower Jaw in the Practical Training of Students of Dentistry and Dental Medicine

Abstract

Professional training plays a leading role in the development of human resources and is realized through interaction between teacher and student, with the aim of forming knowledge, skills, and habits. Future medical specialists—dentists and dental technicians—must understand the anatomy and physiology of all the elements that make up the masticatory apparatus, as well as the biomechanics of the complex movements performed in the lower part of the maxillofacial area. It is necessary for them to get an idea of how the chewing apparatus is built and functions as individual elements and as a whole. To get acquainted with the device and the practical use of various types of devices for reproducing the movements of the lower jaw, which will increase the medico-biological value of dental prosthetic structures. The study of the clinical and laboratory protocol for facebow and articulator work is included in the theoretical and practical training of both dental and dental technology students. Improper articulation between the occlusal surfaces of the tooth rows can lead to occlusal imbalance and craniofacial pain. Some of the studies prove that bruxism can often be caused by malocclusion as well.

Aim: This study aims to analyze the role of mandibular movement simulators in the practical training of dental technology and dentistry students at the Medical University of Varna and Panacea-Community College in Tbilisi, Georgia, while identifying key trends.

Materials and Мethods: The electronic databases of Research-Gate, Embase, Google Scholar, PubMed and Scopus were used. In order to achieve the goal, references were made to the necessary documentation providing practical training for dental technology students at the Medical College in Varna and Panacea-Community College, Tbilisi, Georgia, as well as for dental medicine students at the Faculty of Dental Medicine (FDM) at the Medical University of Varna.

Conclusions: Despite the stated advantages of more complex devices (class III and class IV articulators) in dental practice and during the practical training of dental technology and dental medicine students, the use of class II devices is preferred in both Bulgaria and Georgia. Digital fabrication of prostheses is the future of dental technology and has the potential to provide lower cost and higher quality patient care, but still much of the technology for manufacturing dentures requires real working models to be incorporated into analog device for reproducing the movements of the lower jaw. Given the advantages of class III articulators, it is recommended that dental technology and dental medicine students primarily train with them.