View source for Glossary of dentistry

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{{wiktionary|Category:en:Dentistry}}

This is a list of '''definitions of commonly used terms of location and direction in dentistry'''. This set of terms provides orientation within the oral cavity, much as [[anatomical terms of location]] provide orientation throughout the body.

==Terms==
{{glossary}}

{{Anchor|Anterior}} {{term|term= Anterior }}{{defn|1= The direction toward the front of the head or the lips, as opposed to ''posterior'', which refers to the directions toward the back of an individual's head.  The term [[anterior teeth]] refers to [[incisor]]s and [[Canine tooth|canines]], as opposed to premolars and molars, which are ''posterior teeth''.<ref name="Wheelers">{{cite book |title=Wheeler's Dental Anatomy, Physiology and Occlusion |publisher=Saunders |last1=Ash |first1=Major M. |last2=Nelson |first2=Stanley |isbn=0721693822 |year=2002 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/dentalanatomyphy00majo }}</ref>}}

{{Anchor|Apical}} {{term|term= Apical }}{{defn|1= The direction toward the root tip(s) or apex(es) of a tooth (the apices), as opposed to ''coronal'', which refers to the direction toward the crown.  It may also refer to something relating to the roots, such as ''apical support''.  When referring to direction in relation to entities on or of the crown, this term can be synonymous with both ''cervical'' and ''gingival''.<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{Anchor|Approximal}} {{term|term= Approximal }}{{defn|1= Surfaces which form points of contact between adjacent teeth.<ref name="rech">{{Cite journal |last=Rechmann |first=Peter |author2=Sophie Doméjean |author3=Beate M.T. Rechmann |author4=Richard Kinsel |author5=John D.B. Featherstone |date=2016-02-23 |title="Shallow" treatments of adjacent teeth and their surfaces might be effective in slowing tooth decay |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.3310/signal-000199 |journal=NIHR Evidence|doi=10.3310/signal-000199 |url-access=subscription }}</ref>}}

{{Anchor|Axial}} {{term|term= Axial }}{{defn|1= A [[plane (mathematics)|plane]] parallel to the surface of a tooth.  For example, if a drill bur would be inserted into a tooth from any side (''proximal'', ''vestibular'', ''oral''), the depth of the hole is defined from the axial wall of the hole (from the long axis walls (vertical surfaces bounding the tooth)).<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{Anchor|Buccal}} {{term|term= Buccal }}{{defn|1= The side of a tooth that is adjacent to (or the direction toward) the inside of the [[cheek]], as opposed to ''lingual'' or ''palatal'' (both ''oral''), which refer to the side of a tooth adjacent to (or the direction toward) the [[tongue]] or [[palate]], respectively.  Although technically referring only to posterior teeth (where the cheeks are present instead of lips, use of this term has incorrectly extended to all teeth, anterior and posterior), this term has inaccurately been employed to describe the ''vestibular'' surface of (or directions in relation to) anterior teeth as well.<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{Anchor|Cervical}} {{term|term= Cervical }}{{defn|1= Means ''neck'' in [[Latin]] (as in [[cervical vertebrae]]), and refers to the narrowing of the contours of the tooth surface at or near the [[cementoenamel junction|CEJ]], where the crown meets the root.  When referring to direction in relation to entities on or of the crown, it is nearly synonymous with both ''apical'' and ''gingival''.<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{Anchor|Coronal}} {{term|term= Coronal }}{{defn|1= The direction toward the crown of a tooth, as opposed to ''apical'', which refers to the direction toward the tip(s) of the root(s) or apex(es).  It may also refer to something relating to the crown, such as ''coronal forces''.<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

[[Image:Directions.jpg|300px|thumb|right|This [[radiograph|X-ray film]] depicts some of the teeth in the lower right quadrant.  The arrows point in the following directions: <span style="color:#fc0008;">'''distal&nbsp;←'''</span>, <span style="color:#0900ff;">'''mesial&nbsp;→'''</span>, <span style="color:#dddd04;">'''coronal&nbsp;↑'''</span>, <span style="color:#ff803c;">'''apical&nbsp;↓'''</span>.]]

{{Anchor|Distal}} {{term|term= Distal }}{{defn|1= The direction toward the gingiva beyond the tooth furthest from the ''anterior'' midline (the 'most ''posterior'' tooth' or last tooth) in each [[#Quadrant|quadrant]] of a [[dental arch]], as opposed to ''mesial'', which refers to the direction toward the anterior [[dental midline|midline]].  Each tooth can be described as having a distal surface and, for ''posterior'' teeth, a ''distobuccal (DB)'' and a ''distolingual (DL)'' corner or [[cusp (dentistry)|cusp]].<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{Anchor|Facial}} {{term|term= Facial }}{{defn|1= The side of a tooth that is adjacent to (or the direction toward) the inside of the [[lip]]s, as opposed to ''lingual'' or ''palatal'' (both ''oral''), which refer to the side of a tooth adjacent to (or the direction toward) the [[tongue]] or [[palate]], respectively, of the oral cavity.  However, this term has been incorrectly used for both ''buccal'' and ''labial'', being also applied to the side of a tooth that is adjacent to (or the direction toward) the inside of the [[cheek]] (instead of the more accurate term, ''vestibular'').<ref name="Wheelers" /><ref name="avdc.org"/><ref name="Veterinary Anatomists 1994">World Association of Veterinary Anatomists, International Committee on Veterinary Gross Anatomical Nomenclature, World Association of Veterinary Anatomists, International Committee on Veterinary Histological Nomenclature, World Association of Veterinary Anatomists and International Committee on Veterinary Embryological Nomenclature (1994) Nomina Anatomica Veterinaria: Fourth Edition. Zurich and Ithaca: World Association of Veterinary Anatomists</ref>}}

{{Anchor|Gingival}} {{term|term= Gingival }}{{defn|1= The direction toward the [[gingiva]] (gums), synonymous with ''cervical'' and similar to apical.  However, locations on teeth already more ''apical'' to the interface of the crown and root, referred to as the [[cementoenamel junction|CEJ]], tend not to be described using this term, as it would lead to confusion, as the exact definition is ambiguous.  Additionally, this term would not be used when referring to a tooth ''[[ex vivo]]''.<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{Anchor|Incisal}} {{term|term= Incisal }}{{defn|1= The direction toward the biting edge of ''anterior'' teeth or something relating to this edge, such as the terms ''incisal guidance'' or ''incisal edge''.  This is the sister term to ''occlusal'', which related to the analogous location on ''posterior'' teeth.<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{Anchor|Inferior}} {{term|term= Inferior }}{{defn|1= The direction toward the feet of a human's body, as opposed to ''superior'', which refers to the direction toward the head.  However, use of these terms should enjoy only limited usage when discussing features of a tooth, as, for example, something more inferior on a [[human mandible|mandibular]] tooth will be situated more superior on a [[maxilla]]ry tooth, as they exhibit an inverted relationship.  It is for this reason that the terms ''coronal'' and ''apical'' are substituted.<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{Anchor|Interproximal}} {{term|term= Interproximal }}{{defn|1= An adjective meaning between teeth. For example, ''interproximal teeth'' refers to the space between adjacent teeth.<ref name="Wheelers" /><ref name="ADAterms">{{cite web | url=https://www.mouthhealthy.org/en/glossary | title=Glossary | publisher=[[American Dental Association]] | access-date=2020-12-06}}</ref>}}

{{Anchor|Labial}} {{term|term= Labial }}{{defn|1= The side of a tooth that is adjacent to (or the direction toward) the inside of the [[lip]] (labium), as opposed to ''lingual'' or ''palatal'' (both ''oral''), which refer to the side of a tooth adjacent to (or the direction toward) the [[tongue]] or [[palate]], respectively, of the oral cavity.  Although technically referring only to anterior teeth (where the lips (labia) are present instead of cheeks), use of the term ''labial'' has inaccurately extended to all teeth, anterior and posterior (instead of ''vestibular'').<ref name="Wheelers" /><ref name="ADAterms" />}}

{{Anchor|Lateral}} {{term|term= Lateral }}{{defn|1= A tooth which is away from the midline, such as lateral incisor,<ref name="Wheelers" /> or the sides of a tooth.<ref name="meddic">{{Cite web |title=lateral |url=https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/lateral |publisher= Medical Dictionary-Free Dictionary|access-date=2020-12-06}}</ref>}}

{{Anchor|Lingual}} {{term|term= Lingual }}{{defn|1= The side of a tooth adjacent to (or the direction toward) the tongue (lingua, compare linguistics and language), as opposed to ''buccal'', ''labial'', or ''vestibular'' which refer to the side of a tooth adjacent to (or the direction toward) the inside of the cheek or lips, respectively.  Although this term is technically specific to the [[human mandible|mandible]], it enjoys extensive use in reference to the [[maxilla]] as well (see '''Palatal''').<ref name="Wheelers" /><ref name="ADAterms" />}}

{{Anchor|Mandibular}} {{term|term= Mandibular }}{{defn|1= Entities related to the [[human mandible|mandible]], or lower jaw.<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{Anchor|Marginal}} {{term|term= Marginal }}{{defn|1= A number of different 'margins' are involved in dentistry.  The edge of tooth structure that is prepared to meet the edge of a prosthetic [[crown (dentistry)|crown]] is called a margin, as is the aforementioned edge of the crown; an example of this usage would be "a poorly fitting crown might exhibit ''marginal'' leakage."  The [[gingiva]] and [[alveolar bone|bone]] that abut the teeth are referred to as 'marginal', as in ''marginal'' [[periodontitis]].  The bulk of tooth structure on the ''occlusal'' surface at the point of contact of posterior teeth is referred to as the ''marginal'' ridge.<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{Anchor|Maxillary}} {{term|term= Maxillary }}{{defn|1= Entities related to the [[maxilla]], or upper jaw.<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{Anchor|Mesial}} {{term|term= Mesial }}{{defn|1= The direction toward the anterior [[dental midline|midline]] in a dental arch, as opposed to ''distal'', which refers to the direction toward the gingiva beyond the tooth furthest from the ''anterior'' midline (the 'most ''posterior'' tooth' or last tooth) in each quadrant.  Each tooth can be described as having a mesial surface and, for ''posterior'' teeth, a ''mesiobuccal (MB)'' and a ''mesiolingual (ML)'' corner or [[cusp (dentistry)|cusp]].<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

[[File:Occlusal of denture - mod.jpg|300px|thumb|right|An occlusal view of a [[denture#Complete_dentures|complete maxillary denture]].  The green line, indicating the [[dental midline]], is the defining line when it comes to mesial-distal direction.  The blue arrow, which indicates a mesial direction, applies to the opposite side as well up until the green line.  The red arrow is directly buccal to the right first maxillary molar, and the name label for the patient (Martin) is embedded in the [[resin]] directly palatal to the same tooth.]]

{{Anchor|Midline}} {{term|term= Midline }}{{defn|1= Main article: [[Dental midline]]. Roughly, an imaginary vertical line dividing the left and right sides of the mouth at the teeth.}}

{{Anchor|Occlusal}} {{term|term= Occlusal |content= [[Occlusion (dentistry)|Occlusal]] {{anchor|Occlusion}} }}{{defn|1= The direction toward the biting surface of ''posterior'' teeth or something relating to this surface, such as the terms ''occlusal interference'' or ''occlusal surface''. This is the sister term to ''incisal'', which related to the analogous location on ''anterior'' teeth.<ref name="Wheelers" /><ref name="ADAterms" />}}

{{Anchor|Oral}} {{term|term= Oral }}{{defn|1= The side of a tooth adjacent to (or the direction toward) the oral cavity, as opposed to ''buccal'', ''labial'' or ''vestibular'', which refer to the side of a tooth adjacent to (or the direction toward) the inside of the cheek, lips or vestibule respectively.  ''Oral'' includes both  ''palatal'' and ''lingual''.  Alternatively, ''lingual'' has been used as a blanket term instead although this specifically refers only to the side of a tooth that is adjacent to (or the direction toward) the [[tongue]], technically specific to the [[human mandible|mandible]].<ref name="Wheelers" /><ref name="ADAterms" />}}

{{Anchor|Palatal}} {{term|term= Palatal }}{{defn|1= The side of a tooth adjacent to (or the direction toward) the [[palate]], as opposed to ''buccal'', ''labial'' or ''vestibular'' which refer to the side of a tooth adjacent to (or the direction toward) the inside of the cheek, lips and vestibule of the mouth respectively. This term is strictly used in the [[maxilla]].<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{Anchor|Posterior}} {{term|term= Posterior }}{{defn|1= The direction toward the back of an individual's head, as opposed to ''anterior'', which refers to the directions toward an individual's lips. The term [[posterior teeth]] refers to [[premolar]]s and [[Molar (tooth)|molars]], as opposed to [[incisor]]s and [[Canine tooth|canines]], which are ''anterior teeth''.<ref name="Wheelers" /><ref name="ADAterms" />}}

{{term|term= Proximal }}{{defn|1= The surfaces of teeth that normally lie adjacent to another tooth.  Proximal includes both ''mesial'' and ''distal'', such as when referring to the ''proximal surfaces'' of teeth.<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{Anchor|Quadrant}} {{term|term= Quadrant }}{{defn|1= [[File:Dental quadrants.png|thumb|Dental quadrants]] The dentition is divided into four quarters. The two [[dental arch]]es form an [[oval]], which is divided into [[wiktionary:quadrant|quadrant]]s which are numbered from 1 to 4:<ref>{{cite web |last1=Sahi |first1=Dr. Akshima |title=Universal Numbering System for Teeth |url=https://www.news-medical.net/health/Universal-Numbering-System-for-Teeth.aspx |website=News-Medical.net |access-date=19 May 2021 |language=en |date=2019-01-15}}</ref>

# '''Upper right quadrant''': upper right first incisor to upper right wisdom tooth
# '''Upper left quadrant''': upper left first incisor to upper left wisdom tooth
# '''Lower right quadrant''': lower right first incisor to lower right wisdom tooth
# '''Lower left quadrant''': lower left first incisor to lower left wisdom tooth}}

{{Anchor|Sextant}} {{term|term=Sextant}}{{defn|1=One of six groups of adjacent teeth, excluding the wisdom teeth. The front sextants go from canine to canine, and there are sextants on the right and left of these. See [[Periodontal examination]].}}

{{Anchor|Superior}} {{term|term= Superior }}{{defn|1= The direction toward the head of a human's body, as opposed to ''inferior'', which refers to the direction toward the feet.  However, use of these terms should enjoy only limited use when discussing features of a tooth, as, for example, something more superior on a [[human mandible|mandibular]] tooth will be situated more inferior on a [[maxilla]]ry tooth, as they exhibit an inverted relationship.  It is for this reason that the terms ''coronal'' and ''apical'' are substituted.<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{Anchor|Vestibular}} {{term |1= Vestibular }}{{defn |1= The side of a tooth that is adjacent to (or the direction toward) the inside of the [[cheek]]s and [[lip]]s, as opposed to ''lingual'' or ''palatal'' (both ''oral''), which refer to the side of a tooth adjacent to (or the direction toward) the [[tongue]] or [[palate]], respectively, of the oral cavity.  Vestibular includes both ''buccal'' and ''labial''.<ref name="avdc.org">AVDC Nomenclature Committee (2012) 'Recommendations from the AVDC Nomenclature Committee adopted by the AVDC Board', American Veterinary Dental College. Uniform Resource Locator: https://web.archive.org/web/20160406122037/http://www.avdc.org/nomenclature.html#toothsurfaces</ref><ref name="Veterinary Anatomists 1994"/> Alternatively, the term facial has been used instead although this specifically refers only to the side of a tooth that is adjacent to (or the direction toward) the inside of the [[lip]]s, as opposed to ''lingual'' or ''palatal'' (both ''oral''), and not the [[cheek]]s.<ref name="Wheelers" />}}

{{glossary end}}

==Combining of terms==
[[Image:MO inlay of 3.jpg|200px|thumb|right|This photo shows teeth #2-5 ([[Universal numbering system (dental)|Universal numbering system]]).  Tooth #3, the upper right first [[molar (tooth)|molar]], has an MO (mesial-occlusal) [[gold]] [[inlays and onlays|inlay]].  This molar is both posterior, as well as distal, to the [[premolar]]s in front of it.]]

Most of the principal terms can be combined using their corresponding [[classical compound|combining forms]] (such as ''mesio-'' for ''mesial'' and ''disto-'' for ''distal''). They provide names for directions (vectors) and axes; for example, the coronoapical axis is the long axis of a tooth. Such combining yields terms such as those in the following list. The abbreviations should be used only in restricted contexts, where they are explicitly defined and help avoid extensive repetition (for example, a journal article that uses the term "mesiodistal" dozens of times might use the abbreviation "MD"). The abbreviations are ambiguous: (1) they are not specific to these terms; (2) they are not even one-to-one specific within this list; and (3) some of the combined terms are little used, and the abbreviations of the latter are even less used. Therefore, spelling out is best.

The combined terms include apicocoronal (AC), buccoapical (BA), buccocervical (BC), buccogingival (BG), buccolabial (BL), buccolingual (BL), bucco-occlusal (BO), buccopalatal (BP), coronoapical (CA), distoapical (DA), distobuccal (DB), distocervical (DC), distocoronal (DC), distogingival (DG), distolingual (DL), disto-occlusal or distoclusal (DO), distopalatal (DP), linguobuccal (LB), linguo-occlusal (LO), mesioapical (MA), mesiobuccal (MB), mesiocervical (MC), mesiocoronal (MC), mesiodistal (MD), mesiogingival (MG), mesio-occlusal or mesioclusal (MO), mesiopalatal (MP).

==See also ==
{{Portal|Medicine}}
* [[Anatomical terms of location]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Tooth anatomy}}

==External links==
* [https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Appendix:Glossary_of_dental_terms Glossary of dental terms] on Wiktionary

[[Category:Dentistry terminology|:]]
[[Category:Glossaries of medicine|Dentistry]]
[[Category:Wikipedia glossaries using description lists]]