An evidence-based guide to occlusion and articulation. Part 7: Guidelines for mechanical articulator use; conclusions and a note on complexity

Abstract

Although this is essentially a review, it has not been written in the passive, third-person style normally associated with scientific writing, as it is intended to be thought-provoking and, hopefully, educational. It has therefore been written in more of a conversational style, and is aimed at students, dentists and dental technicians who are receptive to a slightly different view of occlusion and articulation, based on evidence. Occlusion is a topic that has become a kind of archaic minefield of conflicting ideas, propositions, and above all, solutions, most of which are based on a complete lack of understanding of the evolution and development of teeth, and by extension, of clinically objective evidence. That in itself is a statement of conflict (and perhaps even heretical), but it is by way of warning that this guide is not going to be much like anything you will find in standard text-books of dentistry or dental technology. It is, rather, an attempt to help you navigate through what you will read elsewhere, in the hope that eventually you will find an understanding that you can live with. It will appear as a sequential series in 7 Parts.