Optimising outcomes

Professor Richard Ibbetson opened proceedings in the historic Edinburgh Faculty on September 20, by admitting that he had the luxury of hand-picking his speakers for the day, adding that the sub-text – or proper title - might have been ‘What’s (most effectively) done, why and how?’

He then began the day with an overview of ‘Restorative skills for the 21^st century’, commenting that he had lived through two eras: that of the ‘maximally invasive’ (1974–85) and the ‘minimally interventive’ (1986–2012), with the advent of new materials and treatment options, which themselves now demanded a far wider skill-set of the clinician. In short the preservation of tooth structure and the management of functional loading are the keys to long-term success: and no restoration can be regarded as ‘permanent’.

Minimising the restorative burden leads to maximising successful outcomes, although it must be accepted that such techniques as adhesive direct restorations are enormously time-consuming to do well.