The Operative Word - UNC School of Dentistry - The University of ...

Volume 10, Issue 2Volume 10, Issue 2Summer 2012Summer 2012The Operative WordThe Operative WordDepartment of Operative DentistryThe University of North Carolina at Chapel HillDid you know? Drs. Scott Eidson and John Sturdevantreceived certificates of appreciation(teaching awards) fromthe DDS Classes of 2012 and2015, respectively. Dr. Scott Eidson was inducted intothe OKU national dental honorsociety. Dr. John Sturdevant was namedchair of the first-year teachingcommittee.Inside this issue:Foreword to the 6 th Edition 2Chapters and Contributors 3Sturdevant Endowment Fund 4Sturdevant’s Art and Science of Operative DentistryThe UNC Department of OperativeDentistry reached a new milestonein publication excellence incompleting the 6 th Edition of thelong revered textbook, Sturdevant’sArt and Science of OperativeDentistry. First published in1968 by McGraw-Hill, Sturdevant’stextbook has become aclassic, and at last report remainedthe #1-selling dental textbookin the world. With each edition,the department faculty haveworked tirelessly to ensure thatthis textbook would maintain thelevel of excellence that has madeit the “gold standard” in operativedentistry dental education. The 6 thedition is no exception. With theable publication expertise of MosbyElsevier, this edition has furthertransitioned Sturdevant’stextbook into the digital age.Under the editorship of Drs. Heymann,Swift and Ritter as well asthe collective efforts of many talentedcontributors, the 6 th editionhas undergone a dramatic revisionin regard to size, scope, andupdates in contemporary operativedentistry. By comparison tothe 5 th edition, which was over1,000 pages in length and verybroad in scope, the printed versionof the 6 th edition has beenreduced to half the physical sizeand contains just over 500 pages.The result is a textbook that isstreamlined and more narrowlyfocused on the discipline of operativedentistry. This leaner versionwas accomplished throughsignificant focused reductions aswell as the transition of manyancillary topics to an online formatavailable to all who purchasethe textbook. Through incorporationof a companion website, notonly is the entire textbook availablein an electronic version, butalso supplemental chapters onrelated topics as well as teachingvideos are readily accessible.In the 6 th edition, a major improvementinvolves the dramaticallyincreased incorporation ofcolor figures. All existing linedrawings and schematics werecolorized to improve the appearanceand teaching value of theimages. Additionally, hundredsof new color images were incorporatedin an effort to transitionaway from predominantly blackand white figures. The quality ofthe color rendition is excellent,and initial reader responses havebeen quite favorable.Owing to rapid changes in materialsand techniques, all chapterswere revised to reflect the latestin evidence-based clinical procedures.Particular emphasis wasafforded the area of CAMBRA(CAries Management by RiskAssessment) and the associatedareas of caries diagnosis, prevention,and treatment. More andmore dental curricula and dentalpractices are incorporating theseimportant concepts, and the textbookdoes an excellent job ofaddressing these vital areas.Additionally, in the chapter devotedto esthetic dentistry, a concertedeffort was made to includean up-to-date treatise on themany clinical considerations andsteps involved in the preparation,temporization and delivery ofetched porcelain veneers. Fullcolor images are used to illustratethe step-by-step techniquespresented in the context oftheir clinical applications.Similarly, in light of the manynew concepts in enamel anddentin bonding, a focusedupdate was made to the chapteron adhesive dentistry,which is fundamental and vitalto the success of all bondingprocedures. All chapters involvingthe preparation andplacement of composite resinrestorations, both in the anteriorand posterior, were updatedto reflect the latest in clinicaltechniques including newinsertion and matrix systems.All chapters were updatedwith information on the latestmaterials and concepts andsupported through currentresearch.Most of the contributors, bothpast and present, are facultywho are part of the OperativeDentistry “family.” All whohave worked on this or previouseditions have worked tirelesslyto undergird the stellarreputation of this textbook.The result of these efforts bythe department is a contemporarytextbook and superbresource in operative dentistrythat hopefully will maintain thelevel of publication excellencewhich has been its hallmarkfor many years. Additionalinformation regarding the 6 thedition of Sturdevant’s Art andScience of Operative Dentistrycan be obtained atwww.sturdevantsoperativedentistry.com.

Page 2The Operative WordForeword to the 6 th EditionEditor’s note: Dean Emeritus Dr.John Stamm contributed theforeword to the 6 th edition of theSturdevant’s textbook. It is reproducedhere in its entirety.Not long ago I picked up and readCharles Pappas’ lively 1983 accountof “The Life and Times ofG.V. Black.” I rapidly marveled atthe scintillating accomplishmentsof a man whose only dental trainingcomprised a few weeks as anapprentice to a Mount Sterling,Illinois, dentist. Often referred toas the father of Operative Dentistry,Greene Vardiman Black wasborn in 1836, and opened hisfirst dental practice in 1857, inWinchester IL. Coincident withstarting his practice, G.V. Blackimposed on himself a rigorousself-education routine, focusedprimarily on the basic sciencesthat were emerging or developingso impressively during most ofthe 1800s. Utilizing a few precioushours each evening, afterhis children had been sent tobed, Black began intensive studiesof chemistry, microbiology,and pathology. At that time mostof the books and scientific essaysavailable to Black were authoredby Europeans, some writing inEnglish, but many in Latin, Germanand French. Consequently,Black studied these foreign languagesuntil he was sufficientlyproficient to absorb the sciencehe needed in order to advance inhis chosen professional and earlyacademic life.Beginning in the mid-1860s,Black began to apply what hedrew from his basic science studies,and started to publish increasinglylearned articles aboutvarious facets of Dentistry. Withhis dental experience growing,and his academic capabilitiesevermore obvious, Black wasinvited in 1866 to become afounding trustee of the MissouriDental College, where he subsequentlytaught from 1870 to1881. In 1877 Black was awardedan honorary DDS by the MissouriDental College, and in 1884he received an honorary MD degreefrom the Chicago MedicalCollege (later to become NorthwesternUniversity MedicalSchool). In 1883 Black had begunto teach at the Chicago Collegeof Dental Surgery as Professorof Dental Pathology and Bacteriology.In 1897, G.V. Blackbecame Dean and Professor ofOperative Dentistry, Dental Pathologyand Bacteriology at theNorthwestern University DentalSchool, a position he held for 17years. Black died on August 31,1915.Black himself published sixbooks, of which his magnumopus was Operative Dentistry:Volumes I and II (1908). Quicklyreceiving wide acclaim, that workwas revised and republishedseven times over the period of ahalf-century. What would G. V.Black say if today he were handed,and asked for comments on,the sixth edition of Sturdevant’sArt and Science of OperativeDentistry? My guess is thatBlack would, first of all, expressquiet satisfaction that as a scienceOperative Dentistry hasmade so much progress thatsome of the key, enduring principleshe enunciated were no longerrelevant, having been overtakenby modern science and technology.An example would beBlack’s famous principle of extensionfor prevention, a dictumno longer followed because ofthe improvements in oral hygiene,fluoride therapy, remineralizationformulations, and fissuresealants, that together havegreatly reduced the incidenceand severity of recurrent caries.I think that Black would also bepleased that the authors collaboratingon Sturdevant’s sixth editionhave retained the impressivelycomprehensive nature ofthis textbook. With his own backgroundin microbiology and pathology,Black would have seenas very relevant the extensivecoverage devoted to anatomy,histology, physiology, microbiologyand cariology within the OperativeDentistry framework. Forexample, and as is more apparentthan ever, modern cariologyhas become a fast moving fieldwith changing ideas on etiology,detection, measurement, riskassessment, prevention andtreatment of caries. Sturdevant’seditors and co-authors fully immersethemselves in such topics,and skillfully blend and presentthe established understandingswith the new, emerging scientificdevelopments.Black was also a student ofchemistry and materials science.He carefully studied the chemistryof dental cements, and heshared his findings via manyscientific publications. Blackconducted numerous studies onamalgams, their composition andproperties. These experimentswere also written up and published.Because of the centralplace amalgams held in dentalpractice a century ago, I thinkBlack would be astounded by theenormous role adhesive resinsand various composite restorativematerials play today in contemporaryOperative Dentistry.The transition from amalgam tonon-metallic restorations is farfrom complete, yet the adhesivedentistry revolution has beenaccompanied by modifications ofG. V. Black’s venerable six principlesof cavity preparation, asoriginally codified in 1908. Blackwould surely think of this as adefinitive and welcome sign ofdentistry’s scientific progress, agoal for which he always advocated.Black would likely be impressedby the functional and greatlyimproved esthetic results achievablewith the modern compositerestorative materials. Yet it isprobably safe to assume thatBlack the scientist would urgeeven more research to developstill better dental materials withwhich to treat patients, andthereby improve the public’shealth. That is the type of challengethe sixth edition of Sturdevant’sOperative Dentistry hasembraced, and represents thetype of vision and spirit that guidedthe major revisions containedwithin this book.G.V. Black was a consummateoperative dentist, a life-long scientist,and a widely respectedteacher. He was aware of theimportance of scientific papersand well-illustrated textbooks ascritical learning materials for thedental student and the conscientiouspractitioner alike. Blackwould likely, therefore, appreciateand applaud the wellorganizedstructure and the up-to-date content of Sturdevant’ssixth edition. (The first editionappeared in 1968.) It is alsolikely that after a stellar academiccareer, G.V. Black would lightlytug on his beard and smile inadmiration as his eyes fell on theelectronic renderings and colorfuldigital images that grace Sturdevant’ssixth edition. Furthermore,the always inquisitive ProfessorBlack would surely want to accessthe website that accompaniesthis book, and view for himselfthe supplemental book chapters,videos and weblinks thatround out a truly comprehensiveOperative Dentistry learning system.For the dental students whomay immerse themselves in thisbook, and for practitioners whowill wish to use it as the standardreference to the subject, the skillfulemployment of digital toolsand technology will be welcome,and will make this superb masterwork more comprehensive, moreaccessible, and surely more valued.Dr. John Stamm

Department of Operative DentistryUniversity of North CarolinaCB#7450, 433 Brauer HallChapel Hill, NC 27599-7450Phone: 919-966-2770Fax: 919-966-5660Go Heels!Website:http://www.dentistry.unc.edu/Click on “Departments and Units”— “Operative Dentistry”Mission Statement Mission StatementThe mission of the Department of Operative Dentistry is to supportthe academic goals of the institution through teaching, re-The mission of the Department of Operative Dentistry is to supporsearch,the service, academic and goals patient of the care. institution Our primary through goal teaching, teaching research,service and patient care. Our primary goal in teaching isisto provide high quality didactic, pre-clinical, and clinical instructionto pre-doctoral and graduate students in the discipline ofto contemporary provide high operative quality didactic, dentistry. pre-clinical, Research is and accomplished clinical instructionto graduate and undergraduate students in the discipline ofthrough efforts in clinical, health services, and traditional biomaterialsresearch supported primarily by federal grants andcontemporary industrial contracts. operative Service dentistry. goals Research are achieved in operative through dentistry extensiveinvolvement – including leadership positions – in committeeis carried out through efforts in clinical, health services, and traditionalPatient care biomaterials goals are research carried out supported through primarily involvement by federal in theactivities, professional organizations, and continuing education.Dental Faculty Practice and clinical research. A commitment togrants and industrial contracts. Service goals are achievedexcellence is the foundation for all activities.through extensive involvement including leadership positions incommittee activities, professional organizations, continuing educationand other service related efforts. Patient care goals are car-For more information, please contact:Dr. Ed Swiftried Chair, out Department through involvement of Operative in Clinical Dentistry Research and the DentalFaculty Practice. Excellence is the underlying goal ofed_swift@dentistry.unc.eduallSturdevant Endowment FundFrom Paul Gardner, executivedirector of the Dental Foundationof North Carolina:“In the beginning there were theSturdevants,” wrote KermitKnudtzon and Clifton Crandell intheir history of the UNC School ofDentistry, From Quonset Hut toNumber One and Beyond.“Roger E. Sturdevant and his son,Clifford M. Sturdevant, were thethird and fourth faculty membersto be appointed to the newlyfoundedSchool of Dentistry.Upon the shoulders of these twopioneers lay the responsibility forpreparing the early students forthe clinical practice of OperativeDentistry.”The Sturdevants provided operativeinstruction, participated inthe development of the curriculum,and Dr. Roger Sturdevantserved as the first Superinten-dent of Clinics from 1952-57.Roger stepped down as chair ofthe department in 1959 and wassucceeded by Cliff. The familyhas been a part of the School ofDentistry from the Quonset hut tothe new Koury Oral Health SciencesBuilding – Cliff’s son, John,is an associate professor in theDepartment of Operative Dentistry,having joined the School’sfaculty in 1978.Dr. Cliff Sturdevant’s impact willbe felt in the Department of OperativeDentistry and the Schoolforever, thanks to the creationnearly 30 years ago of the Dr.Clifford M. Sturdevant Fund. “Hewas involved in one of the earliestresearch efforts at theSchool, investigating dental materialsand casting techniqueswith a grant from the US Bureauof Standards,” according toKnudtzon and Crandell.It certainly seems appropriatethen that the Sturdevant Fundprovides support for faculty andstudent research activities in thedepartment. Through the years,the department has used thefund to pay for faculty and studenttravel to the InternationalAssociation of Dental Researchand American Association ofDental Research conferences,and to purchase equipment andmaterials needed to conductnumerous research projects.Recently, an alumnus of theSchool of Dentistry made a gift tohelp complete our new KouryOral Health Sciences Building.While the donor wanted to helpfinish the new facility, he alsowanted to honor Dr. Sturdevant,the teacher and mentor. Insteadof having a donor plaque installedin the new building, thedonor chose to honor Dr. Sturde-vant by putting his name on theDepartment of Operative Dentistrychair’s office.We are grateful to each of youwho have remembered Dr. CliffSturdevant in various ways, includingyour gifts to the SturdevantFund.Dr. Cliff Sturdevant