1/25/10

I got a lot accomplished today. My sister came in and I took bitewings and a pano on her, then did OD, and got all quads done for her cleaning. She doesn't have to come back!:) She was a 1 B. She did not have much calculus so it went very smooth. I was just so happy I got her cleaning all done. I noticed that her wisdom teeth were coming in at an angle toward the other teeth. I suggested she go talk to her dentist that it looked like they were about ready to come out. Overall, the day went really well.

1/27/10

I finally finished a full mouth of x-rays and think that they went pretty well. It is a relief to get some of those PA's done. I wanted to see the bone levels on my patient. He had some slight loss of the crestal lamina dura. My patient was fairly healthy, but had a lot of restorations and recession. Therefore, I put him in a class two. My teacher said I would be surprised at how much calculus I will find down below the gum levels. I didn't even get to the cleaning today and felt like I was going as fast as I could. I'm excited to find some calculus. My goal for the rest of the semester is just to be very organized. There is so much to do everyday so sometimes it just gets crazy. I think if I keep everything a little more organized and accesible I will get more done in the appointment. Next Monday I have my sister coming in. Pass of the PE for sealants or atleast get one done to pass off part of the sealant requirement.

1/20/10

Today was more of a layed back day. I just had to finish 3 quads on a 1B patient. My goal was to finish that, and atleast the anterior and universal PE. I need to adapt more then I think and continue using indirect vision. I also passed off the intraoral PE. That one is pretty easy to set up and everything I just had a hard time getting the right angle to get the picture I wanted. I learned that you should try and center the picture you are trying to get. My patient had quite a few feelings so when I was scaling I had a hard time distinguising that from calculus. I know that it is just experience that will help me recognize these. My goals this next week is to finish a full mouth series of x-rays with the schick and do a pano. I need to focus a little more on my radiology requirements. Overall, today was very productive!

1/11/10

My goal for today was to finish a 1A patient and get started on a 1B patient. I got that done, but I didn't get as far as I would have liked on my 1B patient. I still take forever to probe and have no idea if I'm getting the correct readings. I guess that practice makes perfect. I was about to put me down for an exam today on my 1A patient and get that done with. I should have because all of my charting was correct. I know this is only our second patient, but I want to start focusing on getting PE's done. My patient that is six had white remineralizing spots on her teeth that looked like feelings. They were actually due to high fevers when she was young. Those must have been the teeth that were developing when she got those high fevers. Overall, Today was good.

1/6/10

Wow today was a very crazy day, but I think it went pretty well. We had our first patient today. I had my nine year old nephew come in. I thought it would be a breeze, but there was so much charting to do. It was really good for me, because I was actually able to see where some feelings were and spotted a suspicious lesion. I'm so glad Trey was patient with me, and did so great. He had to sit there for quite awhile with me poking at him:) In class we have been teaching each other the etiology of cavities and gingivitis. It is a little harder to explain to a nine year old boy. I just explained to his mom what was going on and tried to explain it to him. My goal is to become quicker at probing. I still have such a hard time with that and I know my posture is horrible when I'm doing it!

1/4/10

Today is our first day back from our long wonderful Christmas Break. I just wish we had another month:) Today we went in groups around to different pods learning more about the ultrasonic, graceys, and doing case studies. It was very beneficial,especially since we really got to learn and use our typodont. From now on we have to do real patients and fill our schedules up. I'm worried for the semester, because I hear from everyone that it is the most difficult. I know I can do it if I have a good attitude and just always give my best effort. My goal in clinic is to learn something new with each patient and to also help each patient learn something new. I'm excited to get started on patients this semester and hope that I can do a good job!