Occlusal Medicine: Why Haven't You Been Taught This Stuff?-Occlusal Medicine: Why Haven’t You Been Taught This Stuff?

Video Transcription

Video Summary

The webinar introduced “occlusal medicine,” presented by Dr. Ian W. Tester, as a framework for understanding how dental occlusion, jaw function, muscles, TMJ health, and airway relate to overall systemic health. Tester argued that dentistry should move beyond treating individual teeth and instead focus on functional diagnosis, personalized care, and interdisciplinary treatment. He emphasized that tooth loss, reduced mastication, and oral frailty may be linked to cognitive decline and fall risk, highlighting dentistry’s broader health impact.<br /><br />The lecture outlined a stepwise diagnostic approach: patient history, clinical examination, neurological screening, muscle palpation, mounted casts, occlusograms, bruxism monitoring, and, when needed, condylography and imaging. Tester stressed the importance of locating hinge axis and using accurate facebow transfer and jaw tracking to avoid interferences and improve restorative outcomes.<br /><br />A major clinical concept was “sequential guidance,” an approach to designing restorations that mimics natural functional movement and reduces strain on teeth, muscles, and joints. A complex patient case illustrated how facial asymmetry, bruxism, wear, and muscle tenderness guide treatment planning. The session concluded by encouraging clinicians to worry less about what they find and more about what they may have missed.

Asset Caption

Description This webinar introduces the topics of occlusal medicine and functional dentistry and emphasizes the importance of comprehensive diagnosis and treatment-planning in all aspects of dentistry. Learning Objectives Understand the terms occlusal medicine and functional dentistry. Recognize the importance of function and the steps necessary to ensure it is optimized. Know how to recognize dysfunction. Know how to diagnose and treatment-plan simple and complex cases. Speaker Bio Ian W. Tester, DDS, MSc, is a member of numerous dental organizations, including the American Academy of Restorative Dentistry. He practices general dentistry in St. Catharines, Ontario, with a focus on treating the complex patient using interdisciplinary treatment. In 2004, he received a master’s degree in dental sciences from Donau University in Krems, Austria, studying with Dr. Rudolf Slavicek. Tester lectures internationally and is a senior clinical instructor in the advanced prosthodontic therapy program with the Vienna School of Interdisciplinary Dentistry.

Keywords

occlusal medicine

dental occlusion

TMJ health

jaw function

systemic health

functional diagnosis

sequential guidance

bruxism monitoring

interdisciplinary dentistry