Materials in Oral Health

About this course: We all need healthy teeth, don’t we? The drive for development of new and novel oral biomaterials has never been more important with many people using oral biomaterials today and seeing their benefits in restoring and improving their oral health for a more enjoyable lifestyle. The unique properties of biomaterials such as titanium (Ti), zirconia (ZrO2) and various polymeric materials have made them materials of choice in oral health: dental implants, oral and maxillofacial surgery, and even regenerative medicine. Oral biomaterials research today is an exciting and intensive multidisciplinary area that encompasses contributions from a wide range of fields from professional dentistry to biology, chemistry, physics, material science, and engineering. This 4-week Oral Biomaterials course unveils to you the special properties and benefits of biomaterials including, titanium and titanium alloys, other alloys, zirconia and other ceramics, and modern composites. You will gain insights of practical use and applications of these biomaterials in different aspects of dentistry and clinical implications. You will realize how contemporary dentistry is about unifying synthetic materials to living tooth and bone tissues. You will get in touch with the crucial roles of digital dentistry and learn about CAD/CAM technology in crown fabrication, 3D printing and digital orthodontics. And lastly, you will be introduced to procedures and testing methods used to analyze and test significant mechanical properties of biomaterials in the research laboratory. Our vision for the course is to bring together expertise and experience in dentistry and a broad range to subjects for potential synergy in tomorrow’s oral biomaterials development and increase awareness of oral health.