Assessing and Managing Developing Dentition

7 weeks
2 hours per week
Digital certificate when eligible
Introductory level

Find out more about how to join this course

Strengthen your approach to managing the developing dentition in a child

Children’s dentition changes rapidly as they grow, making it essential to distinguish normal development from problems that may need early intervention or specialist referral.

This course will help you build a more systematic approach to assessing developing dentition, identifying common orthodontic concerns, and making informed management decisions in paediatric dental practice.

Assess developing dentition with greater confidence

Examine normal eruption patterns, tooth position, occlusion, and sequential dental development before applying structured orthodontic assessment techniques.

You’ll use clinical findings, study models, and diagnostic records to recognise variation and identify signs that may require closer monitoring or intervention.

Recognise common orthodontic problems early

Investigate conditions including anterior open bite, increased overjet, crossbite, molar incisor hypomineralisation, impactions, ectopic canines, and eruption disturbances.

You’ll consider how these problems present, when early intervention may be appropriate, and when referral to an orthodontic specialist is the best next step.

Plan management and referral pathways

Develop practical strategies for managing localised crowding, infra-occluded molars, supernumerary teeth, and skeletal discrepancies.

You’ll also consider communication with children and families, multidisciplinary care, and how timely referral can support better functional and aesthetic outcomes.

By the end of the course, you’ll be better equipped to assess developing dentition, identify orthodontic concerns, and make confident decisions about monitoring, management, and referral.

Syllabus

Week 1
Introduction and Dental Development
- Welcome to the course
  Who we are and what the course is about.
- Development of the facial skeleton and dentition
  In this activity we cover the development of the facial skeleton and how the teeth develop
- Developing your skills
  A quiz to check you have understood the main points from this weeks teaching
- Recap
  What did we cover in this week?
Week 2
Carrying out an orthodontic assessment and when to refer
- How to carry out an orthodontic assessment
  How can you assess a patient orthodontically?
- What to look out for and when to refer
  What are the important problems we need to identify early?
- Developing your skills
  How can we improve our skills for orthodontic assessment
- Recap
  Review of week 2
Week 3
Problems with exfoliation and eruption
- Problems with exfoliation
  General introduction and then we look at exfoliation first
- Problems with eruption
  Difficulties with erupting teeth
- Developing your skills
  Some essential resources to get you started. Then a quiz to assess your learning.
- Recap
  Review of week 3
Week 4
Anterior open bites, non-nutritive sucking habits and crossbites
- Open bites
  What exactly is an open bite? And when should we think about intervening?
- Crossbites
  What is a crossbite and when should we think about intervening?
- Developing your skills
  Some essential reading and a quiz
- Recap
  Recap
Week 5
Increased overjet and trauma
- The relationship between increased overjets and trauma
  When is an increased overjet a problem?
- Managing increased overjets
  How can we simply manage an increased overjet?
- Mouthguards
  When should we consider providing mouthguards in the developing dentition?
- Developing your skills
  A quiz to check you have understood the main points from this weeks teaching
- Recap
  Review of week 5
Week 6
Molar-incisal hypomineralisation (MIH)
- What is MIH?
  In this week we will look at the epidemiology and prevalence of MIH. Then we will turn our focus to First Permanent molars, how they should be assessed and outline the different management options avilable
- Managing compromised First Permanent Molars
  In this section we will look at different options for managing compromised First Permanent Molars (FPMs). The focus will be on when interceptive extractions should be considered
- Developing your skills
  Some essential reading on diagnosing and managing MIH and a quiz to check your knowledge and understanding
- Recap
  The sixth week of the course is now complete. We hope you enjoyed it and found it useful
Week 7
Crowding, spacing and then course conclusion
- Crowding and spacing
  Managing crowding and spacing - what is the primary care practitioners role?
- Developing your skills
  A quiz to check you have understood the main points from this weeks teaching
- Recap
  Recap of the course so far and a treatment planning case to help bring it altogether
- Course conclusion, final test and taking learning further
  This is an opportunity to review and reflect on what you have learned in this course. We also have some suggestions on how you can continue to learn about paediatric dentistry at the UCL Eastman Dental Institute.

When would you like to start?

Start straight away and join a global classroom of learners. If the course hasn’t started yet you’ll see the future date listed below.

Available now

Learning on this course

On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

What will you achieve?

By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...

Assess child patients for ongoing or emerging occlusal problems
Identify occlusal problems in children and young people
Describe growth and development of the teeth and jaws in children
Summarise commonly occurring orthodontic problems in the developing child
Identify problems affecting eruption and exfoliation in the developing child
Describe the relationship between an increased overset and dental trauma
Assess child patients presenting with MIH and consider appropriate management options

Who is the course for?

This course is for dentists and other dental professionals who care for children and want to strengthen their skills in paediatric orthodontic assessment, early intervention, and referral decision-making.

Who developed the course?

UCL (University College London)

UCL was founded in 1826. It was the first English university established after Oxford and Cambridge, and the first to open up university education to those previously excluded from it.

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Choose the best way to learn for you!	$109/one-off payment	$244.99 for a whole year Automatically renews	Free
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Access to this course	tick	tick	Limited to 7 weeks
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		Cancel for free anytime

Ways to learn

Choose the best way to learn for you!

Best Value - learn more, save more!

Subscribe & save

$244.99 for a whole year

Automatically renews

Develop skills to further your career

Access to this course
Access to 1,000+ courses
Learn at your own pace
Discuss your learning in comments
Tests to boost your learning
Digital certificate when you're eligible

Cancel for free anytime

Buy this course

$109/one-off payment

Fulfill your current learning need

Access to this course
Learn at your own pace
Discuss your learning in comments
Tests to boost your learning
Printed and digital certificate when you’re eligible

Continue & Upgrade

Start learning today

Free

Try this course - with limits

Limited to 7 weeks

Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades)

Sale price available until 2 November 2026 at 23:59 (UTC). T&Cs apply.

Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades)

Sale price available until 2 November 2026 at 23:59 (UTC). T&Cs apply.

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