Abstract

GOIRIS, Fábio Aníbal; WITEK, Jéssica Elaine  and  STRIECHEN, Tatiane Michelle. Critical analysis of the periodontal diseases' classification after ten years: essentialism and nominalism in the new taxonomy. Odontol. Clín.-Cient. (Online) [online]. 2010, vol.9, n.4, pp. 307-309. ISSN 1677-3888.

Periodontal diseases appears under several clinics forms and can be modified by local and systemic variables, what has result in permanent alteration of his taxonomy. The proposals of classification were always based in a nominalist and/or essentialist concept of disease. The essentialist concept, for example, means that the periodontitis is a connection among the causes, the signs and symptoms of the disease, but without considering that they possess differences amongst themselves in the aetiology, natural history, progression and response to the therapy. The result was the imprecise classifications and the arbitrary interpretations. An important contribution to overcome the essencialist concept was the new classification of the periodontal diseases presented by American Academy of Periodontology, AAP1, in 1999. The purpose of this review is to present a discussion concerning the first 10 years of the new classification, pointing their conflicting points.

Keywords : Classification of Periodontal Diseases; Essentialism; Nominalism; Taxonomy; Etiopathogenic of periodontal diseases.