Postgraduate Degree in Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology
In accordance with the general objectives of the Universitat Internacional de Catalunya, the Faculty of Dentistry aims to provide an educational service to society by providing teaching and scientific research tasks to offer professional training and scientific, cultural and human education to students, as well as developing activities that promote culture.
Constant changes in the global environment require continuous professional development as well as improved critical thinking skills. As a result, it is important to seek, expand and develop understanding in a given field of knowledge, in order to solve problems, generate new knowledge and achieve professional skills through instruments that allow specialists to play a part in the field of scientific research, in addition to training them in higher education methodologies and strategies so they can adequately transmit that knowledge.
The saturation of the labour market, as a result of the large number of graduates who will enter the market in the coming years, will mean that recent graduates need to look for alternatives other than traditional in-person specialist training.
The Degree in Dentistry qualifies prepares students to enter the dental profession, but in recent years a number of specialities have appeared within the profession, which, although not yet recognised and without a legal regulatory framework, are expected to be regulated in the near future.
In countries such as the United States, Chile and the United Kingdom, Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology is a recognised speciality. In order to practice in this field, students need a Degree in Dentistry and to complete an official programme that varies in duration between two and three years. As it stands, to our knowledge there are currently no postgraduate programmes in this field in Spain.
A decade ago, after disruptive innovations, difficult-to-access medical scanners were replaced in our field by cone beam computed tomography. This equipment allows us to obtain images from all over the region in our dental clinic, providing clinicians with an enormous amount of information that has changed the way we understand a number of pathologies.
Exposing patients to lower doses of radiation, combined with the practicality of carrying out examinations in the dental surgery, mean it essential to train the dentists in the maxillofacial radiology. Many practising professionals have not yet received training in how to interpret the scans they receive.
Having been accustomed to interpreting panoramic x-rays or orthopantomogramme, dentists face the issue that their examinations are not properly informed, and that they may not diagnose existing pathologies during examinations, with the consequent medico-legal risk.
In the various fields of action of the Specialist in Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, competences include:
In relation to the previous considerations about image exams
To be undertaken by professionals whose standard criteria is to protect their patients according to the international regulation for the reduction of the radiation doses to a reasonable minimum in order to obtain diagnostic benefits (ALARA criteria).
In order for your professional work in Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology to always consider the cost-benefit relationship between the characteristics and quantity of the exams that are necessary and most suitable for each particular case then thisneeds to be considered. The reason for this is so that your activities can be undertaken in the way that causes the least damage when using ionising radiation and also with a view to the most suitable level of resolution of clinical concerns for which each patient will have been informed about the respective image examinations that will be used.
Given the continuous progress on the scientific and technological progress in Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology places a critical attitude and permanently updates information which allows them to suitably adopt the concepts which constitute a benefit to this discipline in dentistry in order to put them into practice, the reason why continuing academic education is its natural characteristic.
The image examinations themselves
Students must acquires the skills to correctly indicate conventional and highly complex imagine examinations according to the characteristics of each clinical profile, with one of them being a permanent advisor for general dentistry, specialist dentistry and, sometimes, also a medical surgeon, in order to suitably complement the information coming from clinical discoveries in the oral and maxillofacial fields.
In this way Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology contributes to the various stages involving the diagnosis, control and the treatment of local pathologies, while generating information which complements clinical discoveries and allows students to estimate the prognosis for existing pathologies.
Students must be trained to undertake conventional radiographic exams, as well as ensure that they are critically and correctly advised when undertaking the most complex exams, with the aim of always using the available technology efficiently on the private and public network of image provider services.
This professional has the most authority to interpret the images obtained from these exams both in terms of pathologies related to the motive that led to the exam request, and in terms of the discoveries made thereby, always based on the aim of returning to or preserving good oral health. The healthcare team will provide this as a comprehensive service to their patients.
In terms of their tasks in the healthcare team
In order to do this these professionals must be able to work in a team, whenever Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology activities are in essence an activity involving advice and are complementary to clinical activity, whatever the dental specialisation and eventually the medical specialisation is, that requires their services.
Likewise, the image discoveries can be correlated with the clinical and epidemiological realities of each individual in particular and of the entire population in general and, since he or she also knows the national systems of healthcare planning in the area of dentistry, can be undertaken both in the public and the private sector.
Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology has the ability to guide or contribute to the scientific research that is carried out in relation to the particular work of the specialisation or for which the specialisation provides support. It likewise has the potential to make the activities known and to equip suitably accredited assistants to undertake tasks to support the field of this specialisation.
At the same time, Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology has the required competences to provide their opinions on legal or expert issues with back-up when the pertinent authorities consider it to be necessary.
In terms of responsibility
Further to all of the above, the specialist is responsible for the procedures and results of the work towards the specialisation they are responsible for administrating. At the same time they will be responsible for raising awareness among the corresponding administrative authorities about any eventual irregularities which they will become involved in during their work or which will be present in the clinical guidelines which regulate their activity in the public and private healthcare networks which offer image diagnosis services.

