Current Practice of Comprehensive Medical Care in the Field of Dentistry

Unlike Western medicine, which targets diseases directly, oriental medicine focuses on comprehensive medical care aimed toward providing “comprehensive treatment to every individual who is burdened with disease while considering the person’s psychological and social background.” Kampo, a medical science developed independently in Japan that is similar to Chinese traditional medicine, is also, unmistakably, a form of comprehensive medical care based on the same theoretical ideas. Using these concepts as a basis of the paradigm of comprehensive medical care in the field of dentistry, in 1983, the Japan Dental Society of Oriental Medicine was established mainly by dentists in private practice and has grown into what it is today. Using oriental medicine as the basis, an integrated approach to medical care that combines alternative medicine is promoted. However, at present, there are difficulties with its implementation and reach because of issues related to the national health insurance system and prejudice arising from medical education that places importance on Western medicine. In dental practice, separate individuals, those are dentists and patients, are required to bring their faces close to each other and a mechanical process of treatment such as “scraping”, “stabbing” and “cutting” is performed. It is likely to cause fear and anxiety in patients. For this distinctive feature of dental practice, it is essential to create an “environment,” where there is a “good dentist–patient relationship.” The introduction of a number of alternative medicines, starting with oriental medicine, to clinical practice is indispensable to dental care in terms of establishing a state of physical and mental well-being, creating an “environment” for good medical care, and enabling pain management through analgesic activity and general management through homeostasis.