Intra- oral examinations

Question 1

List what is looked at during the intra- oral exam (8)

Answer 1

Periodontal tissues

Frenal attachment

Palate

Molar- canine relationship

Crossbites

Overbite

Occlusal plane

Curve of Spee

Question 2

Describe how periodontal tissues are examined

Answer 2

• Check the attached. It it adequate or inadequate (lots of recession?)
• Check the thickness or thinness of the the attached gingiva

Question 3

Explain why frenal attachments are examined

Answer 3

Strong frenal attachments can cause gaps

Question 4

Use descriptive terms to describe the three types of palates seen

Answer 4

• Wide and shallow
• Normal in width and depth
• Deep and constricted

Question 5

Describe the three classes of molar/canine relationships

Answer 5

Class I:
• Mesiobuccal cusp tip of upper 6 sits in the mesiobuccal groove of lower 6
• Lower canine sits in the fossa of the upper canine (only issue is overcrowding)

Class II:
• Mesiobuccal tip is too forward
• Upper and lower canines are not in contact

Class III:
• Mesiobuccal tip is too backwards, such that the 6’s do not touch at all
• Upper canine rests in the fossa of the lower canine

Question 6

Define crossbites

Answer 6

• Maxillary posterior teeth may fall behind mandibular posterior teeth on either one side, or both sides
• Quadrant/ sextant may have a more lingual or buccal protrusion than the others
• Lateral misalignment of dental arches

Question 7

Define overbite (or underbite)

Answer 7

• Measured in mm
• Extreme (over): The anterior maxillary teeth completely cover the mandibular anteriors
• Extreme (under): The anterior maxillary teeth sit completely behind the mandibular anteriors

Question 8

Describe what the occlusal plane is, how it is measured and define “canting”

Answer 8

• Checks the horizontalness of the smile
• Measured by getting patient to bite onto a ruler and seeing whether the ruler stays straight or slants

Canting:
• When the smile is uneven due to some teeth having higher points than others. The teeth occlusion in the smile appears tilted

Question 9

Define the curve of Spee

Answer 9

• Thecurvatureof the mandibular occlusal plane beginning at the premolar and following the buccal cusps of the posterior teeth, continuing to the terminal molar