Program Overview

Periodontics Program

The Periodontics program at Virginia Commonwealth University offers a comprehensive education in the diagnosis, treatment, and management of periodontal diseases. The program is designed to provide students with a thorough understanding of the fundamental concepts of periodontal disease, as well as the technical skills necessary for proper patient assessment, diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment planning.

Course Offerings

The program includes a range of courses that cover various aspects of periodontics, including:

• PERI 326: Periodontics I: Introduces the fundamental concepts of periodontal disease, including etiology, diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment planning.
• PERI 329: Periodontics II: Provides the scientific basis for understanding the pathology and etiological factors of periodontal diseases, as well as periodontal therapy and advanced periodontal therapy procedures.
• PERI 508: Physical Diagnosis: Covers physical diagnosis, history taking, general physical examination, and review of major organ systems.
• PERI 511: Anesthesiology Rotation: Provides experience in general anesthesia under the direction of a dental anesthesiologist.
• PERI 512: Conscious Sedation: Reviews concepts of parental conscious sedation techniques, including anatomy and physiology, drug pharmacology, and management of emergencies.
• PERI 514: Introduction to Periodontics: Introduces the clinical practice of periodontics, emphasizing diagnosis, etiology, prognosis, treatment planning, and therapeutic approaches.
• PERI 515: Internal Medicine Rotation: Provides experience in internal medicine under the direct supervision of the Department of Internal Medicine.
• PERI 520: Principles of Periodontics: Reviews the principles of the basic science of periodontology, including anatomy, classification, etiology, diagnosis, and treatment planning.
• PERI 525: Diagnosis of Periodontal Diseases: Develops a fundamental understanding of how to assess patients for periodontal disease and develop a specific diagnosis.
• PERI 526: Etiology and Pathogenesis of Periodontal Diseases: Builds upon knowledge of diagnosis and develops understanding of the causes, mechanisms, and development of periodontal disease.
• PERI 552: Implantology: Covers the historical review of dental implants, including biologic principles, techniques, and systems.
• PERI 619: Clinical Pathology Rotation: Provides instruction in patient assessment, biopsy technique, and review of oral histologic slide materials.
• PERI 627: Non-Surgical Periodontal Therapy: Adds to the skill set a conceptual knowledge of non-surgical treatment options for periodontal disease.
• PERI 630: Medicine: Oral Medicine Seminar: Emphasizes diagnosis, pathogenesis, oral manifestations, and management of systemic diseases.
• PERI 650: Periodontal Literature Review: Reviews the periodontal literature from early classic articles to current publications.
• PERI 654: Treatment Plan: Case Presentations: Emphasizes the interpretation of medical and dental histories, radiographic and clinical findings, diagnosis, etiology, prognosis, treatment planning, and supportive periodontal care.
• PERI 656: Current Literature Review: Provides an in-depth review of contemporary periodontal literature.
• PERI 680: Clinical Periodontics: Provides supervised training in periodontics, emphasizing diagnosis, treatment planning, prognosis, and surgical techniques.
• PERI 700: Advanced Periodontal Selective: Enhances the general dentist's knowledge regarding indications, diagnosis, and treatment planning of periodontal surgical procedures.
• PERI 719: Specialty Practice Management: Provides experience in office management and familiarizes students with contemporary modes of practice administration and patient management.
• PERI 733: Surgical Periodontal Therapy: Completes the didactic exploration of periodontal diseases with a conceptual knowledge of surgical treatment options.
• PERI 739: Clinical Periodontics III: Enables dental students to meet the periodontal needs of present and future patients, emphasizing biology, pathology, diagnosis, and treatment planning.
• PERI 749: Clinical Periodontics IV: Provides competency assessment of the dental student as an entry-level dentist in the diagnosis and management of patients with periodontal diseases.
• PERI 780: Advanced Assessment and Management of Periodontal Diseases: Presents periodontal literature from early classic articles to current publications, emphasizing interpretation of medical and dental histories, radiographic and clinical findings, and treatment planning.
• PERI 781: Advanced Dental Implantology: Presents the literature from early classic articles to current publications pertaining to the scientific basis of dental implants.
• PERI 782: Research in Periodontics: Provides an introduction to research study design, use of biostatistical methods, critical appraisal of published articles, and writing of scientific manuscripts.
• PERI 783: Advanced Research in Periodontics: Emphasizes identifying research questions, conducting literature reviews, developing research protocols, collecting and analyzing data, and presenting research findings.

Program Objectives

The primary objective of the department is to provide an educational experience that will enable dental students to meet the periodontal needs of present and future patients. This includes developing awareness of the biology of the periodontium and pathology of gingival and periodontal diseases, as well as the ability to examine, diagnose, and develop a treatment plan for patients with significant periodontal disease.