BDS Oral Medicine Syllabus

Oral Medicine syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Oral Medicine in BDS, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Introduction to Oral Medicine

   2 topics

   • History and Scope
     • Definition and Importance
     • Evolution of Oral Medicine
     • Role of Oral Medicine in Healthcare
   • Clinical Examination
     • Patient Interview Techniques
     • Oral Examination Procedures
     • Diagnostic Tools and Methods
2. 2

   Oral Pathology

   3 topics

   • Oral Lesions
     • Benign Lesions
     • Premalignant Lesions
     • Malignant Lesions
   • Oral Ulcers
     • Recurrent Aphthous Stomatitis
     • Traumatic Ulcers
     • Infectious Ulcers
   • Oral Pigmentation
     • Physiological Pigmentation
     • Pathological Pigmentation
     • Drug-induced Pigmentation
3. 3

   Oral Diagnosis

   2 topics

   • Diagnostic Methods
     • Radiographic Techniques
     • Biopsy Methods
     • Laboratory Tests
   • Differential Diagnosis
     • Lesions of the Oral Cavity
     • Systemic Diseases with Oral Manifestations
     • Oral Manifestations of Dermatological Diseases
4. 4

   Oral Medicine and Systemic Health

   2 topics

   • Oral-Systemic Disease Connection
     • Diabetes and Oral Health
     • Cardiovascular Diseases and Oral Health
     • Respiratory Diseases and Oral Health
   • Management of Medically Compromised Patients
     • Patients with Diabetes
     • Patients with Cardiovascular Conditions
     • Patients with Immunocompromised Conditions
5. 5

   Oral Medicine Therapeutics

   2 topics

   • Pharmacology in Oral Medicine
     • Antibiotics
     • Antifungal Agents
     • Antiviral Agents
   • Non-Pharmacological Treatments
     • Laser Therapy
     • Cryotherapy
     • Photodynamic Therapy
6. 6

   Emerging Trends in Oral Medicine

   2 topics

   • Genomic Medicine
     • Genetic Predisposition to Oral Diseases
     • Gene Therapy
     • Personalized Medicine
   • Telemedicine in Oral Health
     • Teleconsultation
     • Remote Diagnosis
     • Digital Health Records

Oral Medicine flashcards for BDS

22 of 52 cards from the Oral Medicine deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. What is oral medicine as a dental specialty?

   The specialty concerned with the diagnosis and non-surgical management of oral and maxillofacial diseases, and the oral care of medically complex patients, sitting at the interface of dentistry and medicine.

2. What are the main components of a dental/oral medicine case history in correct order?

   Chief complaint, history of presenting illness, past dental history, past medical history, drug/medication history, family history, personal/social history, and review of systems.

3. What does the mnemonic SOCRATES stand for when characterizing orofacial pain?

   Site, Onset, Character, Radiation, Associations, Time course, Exacerbating/relieving factors, Severity.

4. What are the four classical techniques of physical clinical examination?

   Inspection, palpation, percussion, and auscultation.

5. When examining oral mucosa, what does bimanual palpation assess and where is it especially used?

   It assesses masses and glands by feeling tissue between two hands (one intraoral, one extraoral); especially used for the floor of the mouth and the submandibular gland.

6. How is a leukoplakia clinically defined?

   A predominantly white plaque of questionable risk, having excluded other known diseases or disorders that carry no increased risk for cancer; it is a clinical diagnosis of exclusion.

7. How is erythroplakia defined and why is it clinically important?

   A fiery red patch that cannot be characterized clinically or pathologically as any other definable disease; it has the highest malignant transformation potential of the potentially malignant oral lesions.

8. List the major oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMDs).

   Leukoplakia, erythroplakia, oral submucous fibrosis, oral lichen planus, actinic cheilitis, and palatal lesions of reverse smokers.

9. What is oral submucous fibrosis and its main etiologic agent?

   A chronic, progressive fibrosing condition of the oral mucosa causing trismus and blanching/rigidity; strongly associated with areca (betel) nut chewing.

10. How can you clinically distinguish oral candidiasis (pseudomembranous) from leukoplakia?

    Pseudomembranous candidiasis (thrush) wipes off leaving an erythematous or bleeding base, whereas leukoplakia cannot be scraped off.

11. What is the classic clinical description of oral lichen planus?

    Bilateral, symmetrical white lacy striae (Wickham's striae), most often on the buccal mucosa; forms include reticular, erosive, atrophic, plaque, papular, and bullous.

12. How are oral ulcers classified by duration?

    Acute (short-lived, e.g., traumatic, herpetic, aphthous) and chronic (persisting >2-3 weeks, e.g., malignancy, tuberculosis, deep fungal infection).

13. What are the three clinical types of recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS)?

    Minor aphthae (<10 mm, heal without scarring), major aphthae (>10 mm, heal with scarring), and herpetiform ulcers (multiple 1-2 mm ulcers that coalesce).

14. Which systemic deficiencies should be excluded in recurrent aphthous ulceration?

    Iron, folate (folic acid), and vitamin B12 deficiencies (and sometimes zinc), plus consideration of celiac disease and Behcet disease.

15. What features of an oral ulcer should raise suspicion of malignancy?

    Persistence >2-3 weeks, rolled/everted indurated margins, a hard fixed base, absence of pain early, and associated lymphadenopathy.

16. What is the classic presentation of primary herpetic gingivostomatitis?

    Fever and malaise with multiple painful vesicles that rupture into ulcers on the gingiva and mucosa, typically in young children, caused by HSV-1.

17. Name three common causes of diffuse (generalized) oral pigmentation.

    Physiologic/racial melanosis, smoker's melanosis, and systemic causes such as Addison's disease or drug-induced pigmentation.

18. What oral sign is associated with Addison's disease?

    Diffuse or patchy brown melanotic pigmentation of the oral mucosa (buccal mucosa, gingiva) due to increased ACTH/MSH stimulation of melanocytes.

19. What is an amalgam tattoo and how is it distinguished from a melanotic lesion?

    A grey-blue-black macule from amalgam particles embedded in mucosa; it may show radiopaque flecks on radiograph and does not change over time, unlike a nevus or melanoma.

20. What features of an oral pigmented lesion suggest melanoma rather than a benign nevus?

    Asymmetry, irregular borders, color variegation, diameter >6 mm, rapid growth, ulceration, and change over time (ABCDE criteria applied orally).

21. What syndrome links perioral/oral melanotic macules with intestinal polyposis?

    Peutz-Jeghers syndrome (mucocutaneous pigmentation with hamartomatous GI polyps).

22. What is the diagnostic gold standard for a suspected oral malignancy?

    Incisional (or excisional for small lesions) biopsy with histopathological examination.

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