Vol. 100 No. 1 July 2005

EDITORIAL

You don’t know what you don’t know

Dentistry is a dynamic profession. As an individualwho received general dental and specialty trainingin the 1970s, I am amazed at how many principlesand techniques that I was taught in that era are nolonger appropriate or adequate. As a specialist in oral-maxillofacial surgery, it is difficult for one to have a fullappreciation for all the changes in the general dentalfield. But just looking at the areas of dental materials,implants, pharmacology, and new understandings in thefield of medicine is daunting. Also improved strategiesfor delivering endodontics, orthodontics, and periodon-tics continue to come forth. Pathologists now explorethe genetic andmolecular bases of pathology, and radiol-ogists have a new array of advanced imaging technologyat their fingertips. Thus, those dentists who aremore thana couple of years out of dental school or their residencyprogram cannot rely on their prior training as makingthem fully cognizant of the latest thoughts on patientmanagement concepts and techniques.

Continued learning is therefore necessary if oneseeks to give their patients all of the advantages con-temporary dental and medical science have to offer.Patients expect us, as professionals, to be aware of allthere is to know within the areas of care we individuallyoffer to our own patients; otherwise they presume wewould refer them to someone with the requisite ex-pertise or, at the very least, obtain the advice from aconsultant.

As a full-time academician, dean, and journal editor,it might be easy for someone like me to pontificate aboutthe duty of all dentists to constantly strive to know allthere is to know about their particular scope of dentalissues and procedures. I am immersed in a sea ofknowledge, ready to drink it in. I teach and thereforefeel compelled to stay abreast of new ideas related tomy specialty, and I continue to regularly treat my ownpatients giving me an additional impetus to stay current.Plus I have the advantage of reading all oral surgerysubmissions to this Journal, and occasionally reviewbooks and submissions to other journals. I also have an

unexplainable love to learn things, all things. For me,continually learning is virtually automatic.

Dental deans are often kidded (maybe they’re notkidding) that they are out of touch with the practicingdentist, but all of the deans I know are very aware ofthe physical and psychological burdens of the practiceof dentistry in the private sector. Continued focus ondelivering precise, technique-sensitive procedures andmaking correct judgment calls on each patient for manyhours at a stretch can be exhausting. And the financialresponsibility to one’s practice makes each day awayfrom the office costly. So for practitioners to take a dayor more off on a regular basis to obtain updated knowl-edge by traditional means in a classroom or meetinghall can be difficult. This is especially true if one mustfirst travel to a distant site where the education isprovided.

Journals have long been a valuable means by whichnew knowledge about a discipline is delivered. Thisis particularly true if the journal obtains quality sub-missions that are then subjected to review by contentexperts. Thus, regular reading of dental journals such asthis one is a useful way to receive some of the continuingeducation dental professionals should gain.

Most states in the United States require all dentalprofessionals to participate in continuing education (CE)as a basis for maintaining an active license to practice.Some liability insurers and others also have a continuingeducation requirement. In the past, only educationalprograms given in the standard meeting room settingwere allowed to be credited toward CE requirements.However, most agencies requiring CE have extendedthe allowed CE formats to include on-line courses andlearning via the reading and ‘‘digestion’’ of articles inpeer-reviewed publications. Some agencies have goneso far as to include attendance at practice managementcourses and society business meetings. These can helpeducate an individual but rarely help one learn newscientifically validated concepts affecting the direct careof patients. Nonetheless, the ability to receive CE credit

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from reading articles is now available from manyjournals.

I am pleased that our Journal will soon offer thisoption to our readers. The details of our CE offering willcome with the next issue; but in brief, an article fromeach of our main sections will be designated eachmonth as a CE credit-eligible article. Selected articleswill either touch on new, clinically relevant concepts ortechniques, or put into question commonly held beliefsor principles and might change how we view andmanage certain clinical circumstances. This does notmean other non-CE designated articles are unimportant;rather, it only means that they do not change currentthinking to an equally significant degree. Each desig-nated article will have a primary and secondary questionposed. The reader is expected to read the article, thenanswer the questions and submit their answers in orderto receive credit. Continuing education credit will beadministered through the American College of Oraland Maxillofacial Surgeons, who are an ADA CERP

Recognized Provider and recognized by the Academyof General Dentistry. The process will be revenueneutral, but a nominal fee will be necessary. This feefalls well below the typical cost for continuing educa-tion credits earned in other ways.

Although our Journal should not be the sole source ofcontinued learning for any dental professional, we hopemany take advantage of this easy way to stay informedabout clinically applicable scientific progress.

James R. Hupp, DMD, MD, JD, MBAEditor-in-Chief

Section Editor, Oral and Maxillofacial SurgeryThe University of Mississippi

School of DentistryJackson, Miss

doi:10.1016/j.tripleo.2005.05.056