The Study of Temporomandibular Disorders and Orofacial Pain from the Perspective of the Predoctoral Dental Curriculum

This paper addresses questions 2 to 6 posed in the charge to the conference to discuss the study of temporomandibular disorders (TMD) and orofacial pain from the perspective of the predoctoral dental curriculum. This paper lends itself to an additional query: how much diagnostic and therapeutic skill relative to TMD and orofacial pain should a new graduate possess and demonstrate to be deemed competent in accordance with the definition of competence of the American Dental Association's Commission on Dental Accreditation? Although much of the content of this and the accompanying articles from the conference pertain to the TMD and orofacial pain curricula of dental schools in North America, most of what is presented here is universal to the teaching of the subject matter; therefore, it could be applied to educational institutions in other parts of the world. Indeed, an international survey relative to the teaching of TMD and orofacial pain would be of interest and value to dental schools worldwide. Keywords: orofacial pain, temporomandibular disorders, dental curriculum, educational conference