The Oral Health Journal has been in the forefront of dental education and technology transfer throughout its 114-year history of continuous publication. It has introduced new concepts, innovative materials, and novel techniques, reviewed and substantiated (or repudiated) existing procedures, and provided an effective national forum for moving the dental profession forward, focusing on both the science and the art of dentistry.
Over the years, the journal’s presentation format has evolved from simple descriptive text to the inclusion of diagrams and illustrations, and then to photographic narratives that explain procedures in ever greater and more accurate detail. Eventually, full-color printing made these pictorial presentations more precise and more effectively informative. Finally, continuing to the multi-platform online version of Oral Health (and its sister publications) has extended its scope and reach well beyond the mostly Canadian parameters of the printed version. Dental professionals around the world can (and do) readily access the latest in dentistry from the comfort of their computers and smartphones.
The presentation format of Oral Health has developed steadily, utilizing the most advanced publication technologies available, from the 2-dimensional (text on paper) to the 3-dimensional (graphic representation that provides detailed simulated depth for improved perception). This issue of Oral Health introduces the 4th dimension to dental education: a personalized video tutorial that chronologically displays the individual steps of the procedure through the simple click of a QR code. (After all, Einstein’s concept of spacetime is based on three spatial dimensions and one temporal dimension.)
The reader is now empowered to examine and evaluate the presentation of the innovative clinical concept from a written perspective, a visual perspective, and a temporal perspective. While a textual narrative can be tedious and confusing, a pictorial catalogue of the important steps offers a far more comprehensive explanation of the procedure. But even a series of images can omit significant details that may impact the ultimate success of the procedure. A concurrently accessible visual recording of the treatment timeline provides all the necessary information.
The 4th dimension of dental education is designed to enhance the learning experience in both hardcopy and online. At strategic points in the article, a QR code facilitates the reader’s smartphone access to a short, but highly informative, visual illustration that further enhances the printed words and pictures. The Oral Health Experience is advancing dental education yet again!
About the Editor
Dr. George Freedman is a founder and past president, American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, a co-founder, Canadian Academy for Esthetic Dentistry, Regent and Fellow, International Academy for Dental Facial Esthetics, and a Diplomate and Chair of the American Board of Aesthetic Dentistry. Adjunct Professor of Dental Medicine, Western University, Pomona, California, he has authored 14 textbooks, including “Contemporary Esthetic Dentistry” (Elsevier), > 900 dental articles, and numerous webinars. Dr Freedman serves on the Editorial Board of Oral Health. He received the NYU College of Dentistry Prize in Aesthetic Dentistry and is an internationally renowned lecturer (3D printing, esthetic restoratives, adhesion, implants, veneers, and dental technologies).
Oral Health is pleased to present the voices of our Editorial Advisory Board members in this forum, which allows writers to share their personal thoughts, opinions, viewpoints and experiences. We want to ensure our tradition of serving our readers the very best in clinical and editorial content continues and we thank all the members of our Editorial Advisory Board for their efforts in making this happen. We welcome your comments and feedback. Feel free to share your thoughts with us through letters to the editor (marley@newcom.ca).
