Oral medicine: advances in diagnostic procedures

In the latter part of the 20th century, the computer and molecular biology have facilitated great scientific progress in medicine and dentistry. In dentistry, emerging clinical methods based in molecular biology and digital technology have the potential to improve the early diagnosis of dental caries, periodontal disease, and oral cancer. In addition, saliva shows potential as a convenient substitute for blood in diagnostic testing for systemic and oral diseases. DNA chip technology, a new system that combines these two technologies, has potential diagnostic value in dentistry as well as medicine. For each of the three common oral disease processes, emerging diagnostic procedures are discussed, with an emphasis on their potential utility for the practicing dentist of the 21st century.