Educational Activities

Descriptions of the prosthodontic program seminars/courses are below.  For descriptions of the core courses shared by all training programs at  Eastman Institute for Oral Health, please visit our main website

Preclinical Fixed and Removable Prosthodontic Courses

Lectures, clinical and laboratory hands-on demonstrations are given by the instructional staff. First year residents are assigned reading material as well as practical assignments prior to and during the course by the  director to familiarize them with basic clinical and laboratory concepts related to fixed and removable prosthodontics.

Dental Implant Basic Course

The course is designed and intended for new graduate students enrolled in Eastman Institute for Oral Health, SMH and Rochester General.  The primary objective of the course is to familiarize the students with the basic biologic and technical aspects of osseointegrated implants.  This is in preparation for further clinical experience and for the advanced course.

Implant Related Surgical Concepts to Prosthodontics

This course provides an introduction to implant-related surgical concepts including surgical anatomy, surgical instruments, suturing techniques, flap design, simple and surgical tooth extraction, detailed steps on implant placement and soft tissue consideration around dental implants. Special emphasis will be placed on a laboratory exercise of the most common surgical techniques on pig heads.

Removable Partial Dentures Seminar Series

This lecture course reviews the literature in diagnosis, treatment planning, dental materials and biomechanics of RPDs. Review of the current clinical protocols/techniques related to RPD fabrication as well as the implementation of digital dentistry in Removable Prosthodontics are components of this seminar series as well.

Complete Dentures Seminar Series

This lecture course reviews relevant concepts of removable complete prosthodontics to provide an in-depth level of knowledge as required by CODA standards.

Maxillofacial Prosthetics & Oncologic Dentistry

This lecture course reviews the state of the current scientific knowledge and clinical protocols/techniques related to maxillofacial prosthetics and oncologic dentistry. It covers all topics necessary for prosthodontic residents to successfully manage and co-ordinate treatment for the head and neck cancer patient and the patient presenting with congenital and acquired defects of the head and neck as required by CODA standards.

Fixed Prosthodontics Seminars

This lecture course reviews relevant concept of fixed prosthodontics to provide an in-depth level of knowledge as required by CODA standards.

Occlusion Seminar Sessions

Background on the history of occlusal concepts, different types of articulators, occlusal schemes, and application of principles necessary in dental reconstruction. Residents learn through lectures, laboratory exercises, and hands-on clinical demonstrations.

Biomaterials Seminar Series

This lecture course reviews the dental materials topics relevant to fixed and removable Prosthodontics (4 semesters). Residents will have the opportunity to achieve the understanding level of knowledge, as defined by the American College of Prosthodontists.

Periodontal and Restorative Interrelationships

This seminar course will evaluate the state of the current scientific knowledge and clinical protocols/techniques related to the diagnosis and treatment of specific periodontal diseases and conditions that are closely related to the efficacy and success of the restorative treatment.

Prosthodontic Case Presentation Sessions

Each resident is assigned a date at the beginning of the semester in which he/she presents a case that has been treated during the residency program. Presentation format is analogous to the format used for the American Board of Prosthodontics examination. All residents are required to attend these sessions.

Prosthodontic Treatment Planning Presentations & PICO Sessions

Each resident is assigned one or more dates at the beginning of the semester in which he/she present a case that has been examined/diagnosed during the residency program. All residents are required to attend these sessions. Mounted casts, imaging, selected patient clinical views, and other pertinent diagnostic information are presented by the assigned resident to illustrate the patient chief complain, medical and dental history, dental exam and all relevant information useful for the purpose of formulating a treatment plan. The faculty members attend the conferences and stimulate and lead an informal discussion among residents as to critically evaluate the patient as a whole and formulate options for treatment plan that can address the patient’s chief complaint.

At the end of each resident’s presentation, the faculty and residents identify 1 or 2 questions for which evidence-based data was not provided during the discussion. These questions are then assigned to the presenting resident who is charged with developing a PICO question for each of them, perform relevant searches and appraisal of the literature and report the findings to the group at the next (2 weeks later) case presentation session.

Prosthodontic Mock Board Examination

This Mock American Board of Prosthodontics examination is given in conformity with the rules and regulations established by the relevant American College of Prosthodontists committee.

The course objectives are to familiarize the resident with the format of the ABP written examination and provide feedback to the resident and Program Director on the readiness of each resident to challenge the ABP written exam.

Dental Implant Seminars (Residents and Faculty)

The course will consist of two parts, each lasting two and one- year respectively.  The course will, therefore, follow a three-year cycle.  In roughly the first two years, a series of comprehensive literature review seminars will be presented by the residents.  During the third year, the implant faculty will present a series of lectures on various surgical and restorative aspects of implantology.  All residents from both divisions will be required to attend all seminars.

Interdisciplinary Periodontics-Prosthodontics Treatment Seminars

Senior prosthodontic and periodontics residents present clinical cases which have been jointly treated by two residents. Discussion of the case from a technical and management standpoint is provided.

Prosthodontic-Periodontics Senior Case Presentations

Third  year Prosthodontic and Periodontics residents will be coupled in a team to present a complex multidisciplinary case that has been jointly treated, by the two residents, during their residency program. Presentation format is analogous to the format used for the American Boards of Prosthodontics and Periodontology examinations. All residents are required to attend these sessions.

Orthodontic-Periodontics-Prosthodontics Seminars

Each team of Orthodontics-Periodontics-Prosthodontics residents is assigned a topic. Each team performs a thorough literature review and presents a literature review/case presentation on the topic. The multidisciplinary nature of the presentations allow the team to develop a joint view of each topic with the purpose of breaking down barriers to multidisciplinary treatment planning.

Prosthodontic-Periodontics Implant Case Presentations and Treatment Planning

Prosthodontic and Periodontics residents present a medium-to-complex multidisciplinary case that has been recently diagnosed for treatment. Diagnostic data is presented to allow a free and unstructured discussion about the case. Peers and the course director suggest element/details/considerations that can add to the case treatment plan and execution.

Invited Lecturers Presentations

These sessions take place every semester. Lecturers are invited on a selected basis by the Program Director/Chair or faculty members. Presentations are usually one-hour to all-day long, are given with a lecture format (AV) and relate to the clinical and laboratory procedures related to patient treatment or a particular literature topic. Occasionally, hands-on, laboratory demonstrations or other formats can be selected at the discretion of the invited lecturer.

Prosthodontic Clinic

Provide comprehensive prosthodontic care within the clinic. The degree of difficulty of the treatment is coordinated with the resident training level. Treatment is overseen by faculty from diagnosis and treatment planning to the delivery of the prosthesis.

Interaction with the patient’s physician, general dentist and other dental and medical specialties is emphasized as indicated for each situation.

Prosthodontic Clinical and Laboratory Technique

Provide residents with the fundamentals of clinical and laboratory procedures and give them a common background from which to proceed before patient treatment. Clinical procedures will be simulated. Faculty will discuss dental laboratory procedures for complete and partially edentulous situations.

Master’s Research Project

Each resident will enroll in a Master’s program. The project is based on the individual’s involvement in the advanced degree program as well as the mentor’s guidance. Finished project results will be written and possibly submitted for either publication or a Master’s thesis.