Esthetic Dentistry in the Modern Era – an interview with Dr Galip Gurel

This year marks the 10^th anniversary of the BACD Annual Conference – an exciting three-day event designed to offer the very best in education for all members of the dental team. This year’s Annual Conference will take place on the 7^th, 8^th and 9^th November at the Hilton London Metropole Hotel, and will include a packed lecture schedule featuring some of the most highly regarded names from across the dental profession.

On Saturday 9^th November, delegates can look forward to an extended lecture from the event’s keynote speaker Dr Galip Gurel. In his presentation, “Esthetic Dentistry in the Digital Era” Dr Gurel will investigate minimally invasive approaches in modern dentistry, and will examine how to make best use of digital technologies to improve communication between team members for the best treatment outcomes.

Introducing Dr Galip Gurel

For many years now Dr Gurel has been recognised as a leading figure in dentistry, and has a long list of honours to his name. He is the founder and the honorary President of EDAD (Turkish Academy of Aesthetic Dentistry) and he was the President of the European Academy of Esthetic Dentistry (EAED) in both 2011 and 2012. He is a visiting professor at three universities: New York University (USA), Marseille Dental University (France), and Istanbul Yeditepe University (Turkey). He is also author of “The Science and Art of Porcelain Laminate Veneers” which was published in 2003, and has been translated into 10 different languages.

Away from his academic career, Dr Gurel also runs a private dental clinic in Istanbul, which he established in 1984. It has grown significantly over the years, and is now a large practice group employing a mix of specialists, associates and two different in-house laboratories, with a team of 34 people.

Esthetic Dentistry in the Modern Era

“In today’s dentistry, correct diagnosis followed by one of the selected treatment plans has prime importance,” says Dr Gurel. “Most of the time it necessitates a highly focussed team approach to execute the treatment. There are many different people involved in the treatment process – dentists, specialists, technicians – so it is important that there is a strong emphasis on good communication.

“Nowadays we are all living in a world surrounded by many digital technologies, and most of these technologies are being used by many of us for our daily activities and communication. In my lecture we will look at how to integrate these digital technologies in to our daily dental practice to ensure excellent communication between the patient, dentist, specialist and the laboratory in order to ensure the best end result.”

As well as exploring the use of digital technology in dentistry, Dr Gurel will also investigate the latest minimally invasive techniques, and how to incorporate them into the treatment planning process.

“A key part of my lecture will be to emphasise the importance of being minimally invasive,” continues Dr Gurel. “Even though the main goal should be excellent form and function, one should never sacrifice any extra healthy tooth tissue more than necessary. In order to reach this goal, in complex cases, specialities such as orthodontics and periodontics should definitely be a part of the treatment planning. For this reason good communication between dentist and specialist is even more important as it will ensure that the patient loses the minimum amount of natural tooth structure.”

In an expansive and wide-ranging lecture, Dr Gurel will speak at length on how technology can be used to enhance modern dental practise, and provide a better experience for the patient. As with all lectures at the BACD Annual Conference, delegates are guaranteed to come away with plenty of hints and tips that they can apply to their work the very next day.

“I hope that delegates will leave my lecture having learnt a great deal about ‘Esthetic Dentistry in the Digital Era’,” concludes Dr Gurel. “My lecture will include strategies for communicating with the patient and ways of presenting the design to the patient in 3D before the treatment even starts. We will then discuss getting the team together, and approaches for predictable, precise and repeatable tooth preparation. Finally, we will discuss how to make best use of modern CAD/CAM technologies, and how to use these technologies to best effect.

“I am really looking forward to my lecture at the BACD Annual Conference. I look forward to seeing you all there.”

This year’s BACD Annual Conference will be held on Thursday 7^th, Friday 8^th and Saturday 9^th November 2013 at the Hilton London Metropole Hotel. For further information call 0207 612 4166, fax 0207 182 7123, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or visit www.bacd.com