DENTAL ANATOMY AND OCCLUSION

DENT 202
(3 credit hours: 1 theory / 2 practical)
Jordan University of Science and Technology
Faculty of dentistry
Department of Oral Medicine and Surgery
Second Semester
Course Syllabus
Course Title
Course Code
Prerequisites
Course Website
Coordinator
Lecture instructor
Office Location
Office Phone
Office Hours
E-mail
Teaching Assistant(s)

Course Information
Dental Anatomy and Occlusion
Dent 202
N-A
N-A
Dr. Ashraf Shaweesh
Dr. Ashraf Shaweesh
D1 L0
ashrafis@just.edu.jo
Demonstrators: 3 staff members

Lab. Technicians: 2 or 3 personnel

Course Description
This is one of the courses provided by the Department of Oral Medicine and Surgery for
undergraduate 2nd year students in the Bachelor Degree in the Science of Dentistry during
the second semester. The course has two components, lectures and corresponding practical
training in laboratories. The lecture topics cover detailed dental macroscopic anatomy and
the basic principles of dental occlusion. Each lecture covers one class of permanent teeth
and there is a separate lecture for deciduous teeth. The first two lectures present the dental
notation systems and chronology of development and the last lectures introduce the
fundamentals of dental occlusion. The practical sessions focus on developing the skills of
carving different teeth out of wax blocks. This practice is assumed to help students recalling
the details of tooth morphology and improving their manual skills. The latter is significant
to have been developed before upgrading to 3rd year. The sessions also include practicing on
dental notation, dental age estimation, occlusion as well as skills of tooth identification. By
the completion of the practical sessions, each student has to hand in for assessment the
laboratory book containing the completed duties that they have been asked to execute.

Text Book 1
Title
Author(s)
Publisher
Year
Edition
Book Website
References

Assessment Policy
Assessment Type
Theoretical midterm online
exam
Practical midterm online exam
Practical midterm exam
Practical duties
Theoretical final online exam
Practical final exams

Wheelers Dental Anatomy, Physiology and

Occlusion
Ash, M. M. & Nelson, S.
Saunders Elsevier, St. Louis, Mo. c2010.
2010
9th

Theoretical exams, practical exams and practical duties

14% (MCQs)
6% (Illustration-related MCQs)
10 % (Held in the lab. in the form of flag race)
10% (Tooth carving, quizzes and lab. books1)
20%
40% (Held in the lab. in the form of flag race (20%) and
tooth carving exam (20%)

Course Objectives
1. To practice on using different dental notation systems for both
dentitions and to understand the concept of dental formula as a
summary for mammalian dentitions.
2. To recognize the importance of having two sets of dentitions in most
mammals and to relate form to function in dental anatomy.
3. To learn and apply the chronological standards of stages of deciduous
and permanent tooth development and eruption.
4. To learn the details of the newly-established standards of permanent
tooth eruption specific to the Jordanian population (Shaweesh, A.).
5. To know the sequence of eruption in each arch for both dentitions and
its need in pediatric dentistry, orthodontics and forensic science.
1

To be submitted before the agreed-upon due date

Weights
5%

2.5%

5%

2.5%

5%

6. To learn the detailed anatomy of all deciduous and permanent teeth and
their pulpal systems.
7. To learn the different traits used to tell different teeth apart leading to
developing skills of tooth identification.
8. To develop skills of estimating dental age by applying the knowledge
they have acquired from dental chronology.
9. To acquire manual skills of tooth carving.
10. To identify the normal variation in dental anatomy
11. To acquire the detailed knowledge of functional and static interaction of
teeth in occlusion and the relationship between dental occlusion and
temporomandibular joints and masticatory muscles.
12. To identify the significance of learning dental morphology and
principles of occlusion for restorative, prosthetic and orthodontic
clinical practice.

40%

10%

5%

10%
2.5%
10%

2.5%

Teaching & Learning Methods

Classroom lectures
Demonstrations
Tests and exams
Review for exams
Textbook reading assignments
Learning Outcomes: Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to
Objective
Related Objective(s)
Reference
No.
Practice on using different dental notation
systems for both dentitions and to understand the
Wheelers Dental Anatomy,
concept of dental formula as a summary for
Physiology and Occlusion
1,2
mammalian dentitions
Lecture notes
Recognize the importance of having two sets of
Handed videos
dentitions in most mammals and to relate form to
function in dental anatomy
Wheelers Dental Anatomy,
Learn the detailed anatomy of all deciduous and
6,7,10
Physiology and Occlusion
permanent teeth and their pulpal systems.
Handed videos
Kraus' Dental Anatomy and
Learn the different traits used to tell different
Occlusion
6,7
teeth apart leading to developing skills of tooth
Lecture notes
identification.
Handed videos
Know the timing of development of each tooth
Wheelers Dental Anatomy,
3,4,5
and the sequence of their eruption
Physiology and Occlusion
4,5
Learn the details of the newly-established
Published Articles of Dr

3,4,8
9
6

6,11,12

standards of permanent and deciduous tooth

Ashraf Shaweesh
eruption specific to the Jordanian population
Estimate dental age and know its significance and Lecture notes and practical
applications
tutorials
Practical tutorials
Carve any permanent tooth on wax blocks
Handed videos
Wheelers Dental Anatomy,
Know the different external anatomical features
Physiology and Occlusion
and landmarks on teeth and their functions
Practical tutorials
Handed videos
Acquire the basic principles of dental occlusion
Wheelers Dental Anatomy,
and how it can be simply applied in clinical
Physiology and Occlusion
dentistry

Useful Resources
1. Jordan, R. E. Abrams, L. Kraus, B. T. (1992). Kraus Dental Anatomy and
Occlusion. 2nd Edition. Mosby.
2. Craig, P (2005) Handbook of Human Dental Anatomy. The University of
Melbourne.
3. Craig, P (2005). The Teeth and Jaws of Animals (Comparative Oral Anatomy). The
University of Melbourne.
4. Lecture notes (to be uploaded on elearning)
5. Videos on Dental Anatomy and Tooth carving. (to be handed)

Course Content:
Date
Topics
Week 1
Introduction & notation systems
Chronology of tooth
development
Week 2
Standards of tooth eruption for
Jordanians
Dental morphological
Week 3
terminology
Week 4

Permanent incisors

Week 5

Permanent canines

Week 6

Maxillary premolars

Week 7

Mandibular premolars

Week 8

Midterm Exam

Practical session of the week

Dental notation
Chronology of tooth development
Chronology of tooth development
Morphological dental features &
introduction to wax carving
Anatomy of incisors
Drawing & carving incisors
Anatomy of canines
Drawing & carving canines
Anatomy of premolars
Drawing & carving premolars
Week of practical midterm exams

Week 9

Permanent maxillary molars

Week 10

Permanent mandibular molars

Week 11

Deciduous dentition
Pulp anatomy & normal
variations
Holiday
Introduction to dental occlusion
Comparative dental anatomy &
occlusion
Catch up and revision
Final exam period

Week 12
Week 13
Week 14
Week 15
Week 16

Anatomy of max. molars

Drawing & carving max. molars
Anatomy of mand. molars
Drawing & carving mand. molars
Anatomy of deciduous teeth
Practice on tooth identification
Labor Day
Dental occlusion
Week of final practical exams
Determined by Registration

Additional Notes
Attendance:
Students must attend 100% of all scheduled classes and labs. Class participation is required.
Should an absence be necessary, student should contact the course instructor by e-mail
immediately. Work missed can ONLY make up with an excused absence.
- No make-up exams or quizzes will be given for unexcused absences
- Late arrivals to class are unexcused absences
- All course make-ups, test, and so forth, must be completed within 14 days from the
date of the excused absence.
Practical component:
Practical training will take place in
Biochemistry Lab. (M4-L2) on Mondays
and Wednesdays. Students are divided
into 4 practical sections according to the
following table:

Section
1
2
3
4

Day
Mon
Mon
Wed
Wed

Time
8 12 pm
12 4 pm
8 12 pm
12 4 pm

Lab.
M4 L2

Each student will be allocated a lab code consisting of 4 digits. From left to right, the first
digit stands for the section (1,2,3,4), the second and third digits are the bench number
(group). The last digit stands for the order of the student on the bench. Students are
instructed to recall their lab codes until the practical part is completed because the lab codes
will act as their lab. IDs.
During the practical training, students of a given section will be divided into groups, each
group will be occupying a pre-determined bench in the lab. and instructed to remain at the
allocated location to carry out the practical duties for the full duration of the course. It is
important to know that students are not allowed to switch groups, laboratories or sections in

the practical part of this course.

At the beginning of each practical session, students will be introduced to the practical duties
that they have to carry out on that day. This is followed by a detailed demonstration on
casts, radiographs, tooth models and natural teeth under a live camera connected to
monitors. In some weeks, short video clips on tooth carving and morphology of the tooth of
the week will be run and watched through a monitor. Once introduction and demonstration
are finished, student should commence their practical duties under supervision that may
include:
Tracing radiographs and assigning teeth to their suitable notation in different
notation systems
Tracing radiographs and estimating dental age

Sketching tooth models, jaw models and occlusion curves

Carving teeth out of wax blocks
Answering given questions / quizzes
Making comments after video clip watching.
Identifying teeth
Preparing and presenting posters illustrating certain topics (optional)

Tools and materials needed for the practical component:

A mechanical pencil, an eraser and a ruler together with the Practical Book. The
Practical Book should have alternating blank and lined A4 sheets
A magnifying lens (optional)
A graph-paper book with pre-sketched outlines of all aspects of permanent teeth. The
book is available at Alfajr bookshop
A blank graph-paper book for sketching outlines of teeth aspects with additional
sheets for helping in tooth carving. The book is available at Alfajr bookshop
Paper adhesive tape, soft tooth brush, retractable blade (( and pair of scissors
Le Crone carver and a wax knife
12 colored wax carving blocks (the extra ones will be available in case the main ones
have failed)
Natural and plastic teeth (it is advisable that students start collecting natural teeth at
the beginning of the course) to be used as reference for anatomy and carving and for
tooth identification. These teeth / models will also be utilized in practical courses of
third year. These are never a waste!

Student instructor relationship

Students are instructed to frequently access the uploaded handouts, recourses and
extra learning materials on the e-learning link on the University's website.
e-learning will also allow for mentor-student interaction through online evaluation in

the form of tutorials, assignments and quizzes.

Students will be able to view the outcomes of their evaluation uploaded on elearning. This includes the results the quizzes and the midterm practical exams.
It is strongly recommended that the instructor is contacted either personally in his
office within the frames of the office hours provided or through email / e-learning.
Contacting the instructors on their private mobile phones is prohibited and will
unintentionally ruin the lecturer-student relationship.