A practical guide to occlusal management for the general practitioner

The general dentist has a unique role as the gatekeeper of dental care. In this role, the generalist is called upon to be the primary diagnostician and is charged with the responsibility for triaging patients. Classification systems devised by many of the dental specialties are valuable tools for the diagnosis of diseases and conditions specific to the specialty, but no classifications have been directed to the general dentist. This paper describes a system being used at the University of California at San Francisco School of Dentistry that enables the general dentist to classify a patient's stomatognathic system as either physiologic or nonphysiologic and then guides the clinician toward appropriate treatment decisions.