Computerized Oral Surgery

Computers have become more and more involved in diagnosis, planning and surveillance of therapy in both medicine and dentistry. They are increasingly becoming an integral part of researches in dentistry and we are obliged to get the best insight possible into their function and their capabilities in order to make the best possible use of their capacity. In oral and maxillofacial surgery the use of computers is constantly expanding especially in the field of digital imaging, and CT, CBCT, MRI and 3D ultrasound are of special importance in that regard. Moreover, various computer applications are used in the clinical management of patients, education, and research, such as the screening methods for oral lesions, involving brush biopsy and computer-assisted analysis of histological sections, oral surgery software packages and interactive programs enabling and specialists to build up their knowledge and to apply their knowledge and critical thinking in oral surgery decision-making. Within interventions themselves, computerization is evident in the planning and simulation of the course of operation, navigation of surgical instruments and postoperative patient monitoring. Diagnostic proceedings and associated interventions relying heavily on computerized oral surgery are extractions of impacted teeth, assessments and revisions of the maxillary sinus, assessments of the strength of the mandible, and especially, computer-guided dental implantations. In order to make more use of computers in oral surgery, in addition to the provision of adequate equipment and software, which is the easier part, appropriate education of specialists in oral surgery is mandatory, as well as the education of students of dentistry within the oral surgery course or within the course termed „computerized dentistry“, the introduction of which is planned.