Types of Dental Professions

by Gabriella Choi

Dentists (General Dentists)

General dentists diagnose, treat, and manage overall oral healthcare needs, including gum care, root canals, fillings, crowns, veneers, bridges, and preventative education for patients. Dentists can treat a wide range of conditions affecting your teeth, gums, jaws and other areas of your mouth. They offer treatments in preventative dentistry (dental exams, dental x-rays, cleanings, sealants, and fluoride treatments), restorative dentistry (fillings, crowns, bridges, and dental implants), and emergency dental care (tooth extractions, root canals, and treating avulsed (knocked out) teeth).

All licensed dentists are required to attend at least 4 years of an accredited dental school and earn a degree, either DMD (Doctor of Medicine in Dentistry) or DDS (Doctor of Dental Surgery). They can also decide to specialize in different dentistry professions.

Pediatric Dentist (Pedodontist)

Pediatric dentists specialize in diagnosing and treating dental problems in infants, children, and teenagers. They focus on unique dental issues that can develop in the gums, teeth, and jaw as the body grows and develops. Pediatric dentists provide oral health exams, teeth cleaning, diagnosis and early treatment to align teeth, cavity removal, repair for dental injuries, gum disease management, and early detection of oral health conditions.

Orthodontists and Orthodontic Assistants

Many dental schools provide limited orthopedic training and instruction, which is why general dentists need to go to orthodontic school after graduation. Orthodontic residency programs offer intensive training for this type of dental specialization. Orhthodontists work on treating misalignments in teeth. They treat jaw misalignment, unevenly spaced teeth, teeth crowding, underbites and overbites, and overall crooked teeth.

Orthodontic assistants are specialized aides who are trained to handle dental equipment and can place wires on braces, take x-rays and photos, make impressions and digital scans, and help the orthodontist with treatment.

Periodontist

Periodontists are gum specialists that focus on treating conditions that affect the tissues that support your teeth (such as your gums and jawbone). In addition to graduating from a four-year dental school, a periodontist receives three years of additional training before earning their license to practice periodontics in the U.S.

Endodontist

Highly trained endodontists (dental specialists) repair tissues inside your tooth. They diagnose and treat complex causes of tooth pain, such as tooth abscesses (infection). Endodontists perform root canal treatments and other procedures to relieve pain. They work to save your natural tooth.

Prosthodontist

Prosthodontics is a specialized branch of dentistry dedicated to making dental prosthetics (artificial teeth) for damaged or missing teeth. The word “prosthodontics” comes from the words “prostho,” meaning replacement, and “dontist,” meaning teeth. A prosthodontist is a dental specialist. After graduating from dental school, they receive three additional years of residency training.

Prosthodontists specialize in treating and handling dental and facial problems that involve restoring missing tooth and jaw structures. They are highly trained in cosmetic dentistry, dental implants, crowns, bridges, dentures, and different temporomandibular disorders. They differ from general dentists because they focus on replacing teeth and restoring oral health and function as opposed to repairing teeth and maintaining oral health.

Oral Surgeon

Oral and maxillofacial surgeons perform surgery on the mouth, jaw, and face. There are several types of oral surgery procedures that are performed each year, including tooth extraction, dental bone grafts, dental implants, periodontal surgery, corrective jaw surgery, sleep apnea surgery, and cleft lip and palate repair.