Difference Between Dentist and Orthodontist (With Table)

The dentist is an individual who studies dentistry, diagnosis, and prevention. These are the doctors that are specialists in their work and their team involves – dental technicians, dental assistants, dental hygienists, and sometimes therapists are also present or associated with them. Modern dentistry considered Pierre Fauchard is the father who published the first-ever book on the techniques and practices.

An orthodontist is an individual that also deals in the dentistry field, diagnosis different diseases and problems, then cures them and suggests their prevention for the future. Specifically, they are specialists in curing the alignment of the teeth, cure the wrong aligned jaws and bite patterns. The orthodontist also deals in the modification of facial growth which is also called a dentofacial orthodontist.

Comparison Table Between Dentist and Orthodontist

What is Dentist?

A dentist is an individual who is also specialized in treating the problems related to teeth or gums in the mouth. They help in promoting good hygiene and various good health practices for the mouth that helps in preventing the problems or diseases related to teeth or gums. Thus, by following the practices advised by the doctors one could prevent many diseases or problems.

To become a specialized dentist an individual must complete his/her bachelor’s degree in dental science following by additional written and practical exams. The students pursuing a degree in dentistry are also advised with a compulsion to practice under supervision for some time.

Nowadays, the increase and improvement in technologies have bought many new medical instruments in dentistry. A doctor can perform an X-ray of the mouth, lasers or drills can be used, scalpel, brush, and much other equipment are used. Many safety types of equipment like glasses, gloves, surgical masks, etc are used by doctors to prevent the spread of bacteria and germs.

What is Orthodontist?

An orthodontist is an individual who is also a specialist in curing facial irregularities. They also diagnose, prevent, and helps in curing the dental problems of an individual. The treatment ranges of an orthodontist are somewhat limited as they are only known best for treating cracked tooths, fixing bad bites, and aligning the wrong jaw.

To become an orthodontist, one must have to complete a bachelor’s in dental degree along with a specialization in orthodontics degree. The bachelor’s program itself takes 4 years long to complete and additionally an approximate hard work of additional 5000 hours is appreciating.

As the major work of an orthodontist is to treat the misalignment of the tooths and curing them with braces or with the nowadays popular substitute of braces the clear aligners. They also treat the bad habits of the children from childhood like – movement of the tooth because of sucking thumb in the mouth. Also, helps in treating sleep apnoea, the zig-zag pattern of the teeth, etc.

Main Differences Between Dentist and Orthodontist

1. A Dentist is an individual that deals in the field of oral health and cures dentist problems and oral health whereas comparatively, on the other hand, an Orthodontist is an individual that also deals in the field of oral health but special in occlusion, dental problems, and facial problems.
2. The education qualification required for becoming a dentist is the normal bachelor’s degree in the field of dentistry whereas comparatively, on the other hand, the education qualification required for becoming an orthodontist is the normal bachelor’s degree with the specialization in orthodontist degree. 
3. The dentist is an individual that helps in treating all the problems related to tooth or gums in the mouth whereas comparatively, on the other hand, the orthodontist is an individual that helps in treating all the orthodontic problems like – tooth or jaw alignment.
4. A dentist is specialized in providing the treatment to all the tooth or gums related problems or diseases whereas comparatively, on the other hand, an orthodontist is an individual who is specialized in the treatment of all the orthodontic related problems of the mouth.
5. A dentist can prescribe treatment or cure related to all the general tooth or gums related problems to every age group whereas comparatively, on the other hand, an orthodontist can prescribe treatment and cure related to every orthodontic related problem facing by the individual. 

Conclusion

Every individual wants to maintain good and perfect hygiene of their mouth. And for that many healthy practices are known to them but still because of their negligence towards oral health individuals face many teeth or gums-related problems. The most common problem is the cavity which is caused to the overeating of the sugar compounds. This is cured and prevented by the treatment of a dentist.

In contrast, sometimes the alignment of the child’s teeth since birth or after the shedding of milk teeth are zig-zag, or movement of teeth because of the bad habit of sucking thumb in the mouth, etc leads to the misalignment of the teeth which is treated and prevented by an orthodontist.

References

1. https://meridian.allenpress.com/angle-orthodontist/article/53/3/240/56045/Long-Term-Stability-of-Dental-Relationships-After
2. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1708-8240.1999.tb00414.x