1st Quarter Down!

Its been a while since my last post, which I blame on the total lack of motivation I have encountered on my first quarter break.  I was surprised at how easy our finals week was here in dental school compared to what I experienced at BSU.  I guess I use the word "easy" loosely because everything we do here is difficult, and finals week was definitely more work than a regular week...I guess what I am trying to get across is that I feel as though I am getting the hang of this whole professional school thing (the photo above is of me studying for finals at 6am).  The semester went very well for me grade-wise, however, I need to work on my waxing if I am ever going to get anything other than a "C" in lab.  It has been nice to relax and take some time off from the grind, but I can't help but feel a little bored with waking up every morning with no goal or motivation for the day.

This video outlines some of the last things we did in lab this year.  The first series is of a project in which we will be waxing up a full mandibular left quadrant starting at the first premolar and waxing all the way back to the 2nd molar.  The lines you see marked on the teeth will give me a reference as to where the cusps need to be placed in order to have maximum intercuspation and the correct occlusal relationship.  After marking the teeth, we shaved off 3-4mm of the occlusal surface.  The next video in the series shows my first ever sealant application to a real molar....that was removed of course : )  It is interesting to me that only 33% of teens have sealants, even though they are remarkably efficient at preventing caries in the pits and fissures of occlusal surfaces.  Dr. Simonsen was one of the founders and biggest advocates for sealants, which made for a very interesting and inspiring lecture.  Basically, what you can see me doing in this video is starting by drying the tooth after thoroughly cleaning it, then I applied the acid which etches the surface of the enamel, thereby allowing for adherence from the sealant resin.  I then rinsed and dried the acid, and applied a primer that would be partially dried off.  The sealant material is then applied over in the pits and fissures of the occlusal surface of the tooth, and is "set" with a blue light that causes the material to harden.  Last in the movie series is my first experience with a high speed handpiece.  We received a little block with random drawings of teeth on it with little "preps" outlined in them.  I came to find out that this little block is called a "learn-a-prep" and is a tool to learn how to use a drill.  It has 3 layers to simulate enamel, dentine and pulp.  As you can see in this particular case I was just practicing making squares and staying in the lines....I have a ways to go before I am efficient.

We have had the opportunity to have some fun before and during break.  Before the break we went to two Halloween parties....I was Stew from "The Hangover" and Lauren was Jade, the hooker he married in Vegas : )  We had a blast at the parties and ended up walking home at 3 in the morning....great night.  Between going out with friends and catching up on college football, we have managed to go camping at Bartlet Lake, north of Phoenix.  It was quite the experience : ) We didn't realize how bitter cold it would get at night, so we froze our asses off, but were treated to the sounds of nature as javelinas roamed through our camp and coyotes could be heard howling in the distance.