Dentistry

Zhongshan Hospital, Affiliated with Xiamen University, was founded in 1928 with donations from patriotic overseas Chinese. Dr. Lin Wenqing, who was then president of Xiamen University, served as the hospital’s first president. Through the sustained efforts of successive generations of medical workers, the Department of Stomatology gradually developed from its early outpatient service into a key specialty with distinctive features and coordinated development in medical care, education and research. The Department of Stomatology is a comprehensive key dental specialty integrating high-level clinical diagnosis and treatment, medical education and scientific research, and has established a mature and well-developed three-in-one development system for medical care, education and research. The department has a comprehensive disciplinary structure and complete subspecialty configuration. Relying on the multidisciplinary collaboration advantages of a tertiary Grade A general hospital, it focuses on precision diagnosis and treatment of oral diseases, comfortable dental treatment and digital aesthetic dentistry, with overall diagnostic and treatment capabilities at an advanced regional level.

The department is a national standardized residency training base in stomatology and an important training base for stomatology professionals in southern Fujian. In 2019, it established Xiamen’s first dental aesthetics studio; in 2020, it took the lead among public hospitals in the province in opening a pain-free dental treatment outpatient clinic. It has now established four distinctive diagnostic and treatment platforms: a pain-free dental treatment outpatient clinic, a digital dentistry studio, a dental aesthetics studio and a dental microscopic treatment outpatient clinic. These platforms provide solid hardware and technical support for full-spectrum, high-precision, aesthetic and comfortable dental diagnosis and treatment. The department’s overall strength ranks among the leading dental departments of general hospitals in Xiamen, and it has long remained among the top three dental departments in Xiamen in authoritative third-party rankings. The dental aesthetics studio is the first professional dental aesthetics diagnosis and treatment institution in Xiamen, the second in Fujian Province and the sixth in mainland China. It has considerable regional influence and a strong patient reputation in the field of aesthetic dental restoration. The department has internationally advanced and comprehensively configured hardware and equipment, including the CiRuike CAD/CAM chairside restoration system, 3-Shape intraoral digital scanner, facial 3D scanning equipment, dental 3D printer, microscopic endodontic system, dental laser therapy unit, dental whitening device, pain-free anesthesia system and a series of other modern high-end diagnostic and treatment devices. The department’s outpatient clinic is located in Area A on the eighth floor of Building 7, and the independently established oral and maxillofacial surgery inpatient ward is located on the eighth floor of Building 3. The department has approximately 80,000 outpatient visits and approximately 800 operations annually. It currently has 44 professional and technical staff, including 2 chief physicians, 5 deputy chief physicians, 10 attending physicians, 8 resident physicians, and 19 nursing and technical staff. The team includes 2 staff members with doctoral-level education and 26 with master’s-level education, with master’s degrees or above accounting for 97%. The department has 38 comprehensive dental treatment chairs and 10 inpatient beds. It is equipped with internationally advanced diagnostic and treatment equipment, including the CiRuike CAD/CAM chairside restoration system, 3-Shape intraoral digital scanner, facial 3D scanning equipment, dental 3D printer, Leica dental operating microscope, CBCT, dental laser therapy unit and pain-free anesthesia system.

Diagnostic and Treatment Scope

The department’s subspecialties cover the full range of services. It can comprehensively provide the complete set of diagnostic and treatment services offered by a dental department in a tertiary Grade A hospital, establishing a full-chain oral healthcare system from preventive care and basic treatment to functional restoration and aesthetic reconstruction. Its services cover nine subspecialties:

(1) Operative Dentistry and Endodontics: This subspecialty focuses on the standardized diagnosis and treatment and long-term maintenance of various diseases of the hard tissues of the teeth, dental pulp and periapical tissues. Its scope covers common problems such as tooth decay, cavities, dental nerve pain, inflammation of the tooth roots, toothache, soreness and pain triggered by hot or cold stimuli, spontaneous throbbing pain at night, and teeth that have decayed to the point of becoming hollow. It routinely performs minimally invasive filling restorations for various types of caries, tooth defects, wedge-shaped defects and cracked teeth. It is skilled in diagnosing and treating acute and chronic pulpitis, periapical periodontitis, pulp necrosis, and lesions involving residual roots and residual crowns. It also performs modern root canal treatment, root canal retreatment and apical surgery as distinctive techniques. The subspecialty is equipped with a complete set of microscopic endodontic equipment, including a Leica dental operating microscope, root canal motor and sonic irrigation system. It routinely performs advanced tooth-preserving procedures such as microscopic root canal treatment, microsurgical apical surgery, intentional tooth replantation and pulp revascularization, making every effort to preserve natural teeth affected by disease. It also provides aesthetic dental diagnosis and treatment, including cold-light tooth whitening, which can effectively improve age-related yellow teeth, tobacco- and tea-stained teeth, mild-to-moderate fluorosis, drug-induced tooth discoloration and discoloration of nonvital teeth. It performs minimally invasive resin infiltration restoration, involving little or no tooth reduction, specifically to improve post-orthodontic demineralization white spots, superficial fluorosis and uneven enamel color. This can be combined with cold-light whitening to optimize tooth-surface color synergistically. Regular follow-up and maintenance can help consolidate the whitening effect over the long term.

(2) Periodontology: This subspecialty focuses on the systematic diagnosis and treatment and long-term health management of diseases of the periodontal soft and hard tissues. Its scope covers common periodontal problems such as red and swollen gums, bleeding during brushing, bad breath, dental calculus, gingival recession and loose teeth, including various types of gingivitis, chronic periodontitis, aggressive periodontitis, periodontal abscesses, food impaction, gingival recession, alveolar bone resorption, loose teeth and bad breath. It routinely performs basic periodontal sequential treatment, including ultrasonic scaling, air-polishing, deep periodontal scaling and curettage, root planing and local periodontal medication. It also provides periodontal maintenance treatment and establishes a lifelong periodontal health follow-up system, effectively controlling periodontal inflammation, delaying tooth loosening and loss, and restoring periodontal health and occlusal function. After years of development, the periodontal treatment team has formed a mature professional echelon and is equipped with a complete set of specialty equipment, including a periodontal ultrasonic treatment device, a Florida electronic periodontal probe and periodontal microsurgical instruments. It can systematically perform basic periodontal scaling and curettage, root planing, various periodontal surgical procedures and long-term periodontal maintenance treatment, and establish a lifelong periodontal follow-up management system. It also provides periodontal specialty support for prosthodontics, orthodontics, implantology and even the diagnosis and treatment of related systemic diseases.

(3) Oral Mucosal Diseases: This subspecialty is responsible for the screening and standardized diagnosis and treatment of common and difficult oral mucosal diseases and premalignant lesions. Its scope covers recurrent oral ulcers, oral blistering, tongue pain, chapped lips, oral white patches and a burning sensation in the mouth, including mucosal diseases such as recurrent oral ulcers, lichen planus, oral leukoplakia, chronic cheilitis, angular cheilitis, glossitis, herpetic stomatitis, fungal stomatitis, allergic stomatitis and burning mouth syndrome. It focuses on long-term follow-up management of mucosal diseases, with particular attention to monitoring premalignant lesions such as leukoplakia and lichen planus. It aims to achieve early detection, early intervention and early treatment, effectively prevent malignant transformation of oral mucosal lesions, and maintain oral mucosal health.

(4) Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery: The oral and maxillofacial surgery inpatient ward is located on the eighth floor of Building 3, with 10 beds and approximately 800 operations annually. The subspecialty provides various routine and complex oral and maxillofacial surgical diagnostic and treatment services, covering tooth extraction, wisdom tooth removal, cyst excision, maxillofacial surgery, jaw fractures, facial deformities, and salivary gland and oral tumor surgery. Its core services include minimally invasive pain-free tooth extraction, removal of complex impacted teeth, removal of unerupted teeth, removal of residual roots and residual crowns, and alveolar ridge recontouring. It is skilled in performing routine minor maxillofacial procedures such as debridement and suturing of maxillofacial trauma, excision of mucous gland cysts and excision of small benign maxillofacial masses. It also specializes in the systematic diagnosis and treatment of benign and malignant oral and maxillofacial tumors. Benign lesions include radical surgery for benign jaw lesions and tumors such as odontogenic cysts of the jaws, keratocysts and ameloblastomas. Malignant lesions include comprehensive sequential treatment of oral malignant tumors such as tongue cancer, buccal cancer, gingival cancer and floor-of-mouth cancer. Procedures include primary tumor resection, neck lymph node dissection, and flap repair and reconstruction. The subspecialty also undertakes the diagnosis and surgical treatment of all types of salivary gland tumors and inflammatory diseases, including those of the parotid, submandibular and sublingual glands.

(5) Dental Implantology: In 2016, the department completed Xiamen’s first full-mouth immediate extraction and immediate restoration. In 2017, it performed Xiamen’s first fully digitally navigated immediate restoration for an edentulous jaw. It routinely performs anterior aesthetic implantation, immediate implantation, maxillary sinus elevation, complex bone augmentation, and implant restoration for half-arch and full-arch edentulous jaws. In collaboration with the Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, it performs complex implant reconstruction for jaw defects after head and neck tumor surgery. It focuses on implant-supported restorative reconstruction for all types of partial dentition defects and complete tooth loss. It provides minimally invasive implantation for single or multiple missing teeth, digital implantation and comfortable implant restoration. It specializes in implant restoration and reconstruction for half-arch and full-arch edentulous jaws, accommodates patients with sufficient or insufficient bone volume, and can use bone augmentation techniques to complete complex implant surgery. Using natural teeth as the bionic standard, it restores normal dental occlusion, masticatory function and oral aesthetics. The implants are stable and durable and provide a high level of comfort, offering high-quality restorative solutions for patients with missing teeth.

(6) Prosthodontics: This subspecialty focuses on the functional and aesthetic restoration of various tooth defects, dentition defects and missing teeth. Its services include denture replacement, dental crown fabrication, denture restoration, repair of chipped teeth, improvement of tooth discoloration, dental veneers, removable dentures and suction-retained dentures. It routinely performs fixed restorations such as all-ceramic crowns, porcelain-fused crowns and bridges, veneers, inlays and onlays, as well as removable denture restoration, suction-retained complete dentures, DSD anterior aesthetic restoration and obturator prosthetic restoration for defects after tumor surgery. It restores various tooth defects, residual crowns and residual roots, restoring tooth form and occlusal function. For patients with full-mouth or partial tooth loss, it relies on the digital dentistry studio and uses a CAD/CAM chairside digital system to rapidly fabricate inlays, veneers, temporary restorations and implant surgical guides. It customizes complete dentures, partial removable dentures and high-end suction-retained dentures, balancing stability, comfort and masticatory efficiency. This greatly reduces the number of visits, improves restorative precision and efficiency, accommodates older patients and various edentulous patients, and achieves comprehensive reconstruction of oral function.

(7) Orthodontics: This subspecialty focuses on individualized correction of various malocclusions in children, adolescents and adults. Its scope covers crooked teeth, protruding teeth, underbite, large spaces between teeth, disordered occlusion, irregular dentition during the mixed-dentition period, facial-profile adjustment and improvement of a protruding mouth. It includes dental crowding, spaced dentition, excessively large interdental spaces, underbite, deep overbite, deep overjet, mandibular deviation and irregular occlusion. The subspecialty comprehensively provides mainstream treatment technologies including traditional metal-bracket orthodontics, ceramic semi-concealed orthodontics and fully invisible digital orthodontics. It also provides early myofunctional intervention for children and early treatment of maxillofacial deformities, guiding normal jaw development, improving the facial profile, aligning the teeth and adjusting occlusal relationships to achieve precise correction integrating function, occlusion and facial aesthetics. It also covers early intervention and treatment of malocclusion, combined orthodontic-restorative treatment, adjunctive orthodontic treatment for periodontal disease, sequential orthodontic treatment for cleft lip and palate, and preoperative orthodontic preparation for implantation and restoration. The department pioneered the 1+X multidisciplinary diagnosis and treatment model for adolescent mouth breathing, bringing together experts from otolaryngology and head and neck surgery, pediatrics, respiratory and critical care medicine, radiology and other disciplines. It provides comprehensive intervention for adenoid facies, upper-lip eversion and skeletal protrusion caused by adenoid or tonsillar hypertrophy and rhinitis, as well as obstructive sleep apnea syndrome caused by jaw deformities, while taking both facial development and airway health into account. The Department of Orthodontics also treats masticatory pain caused by disordered occlusion and temporomandibular disorders. This hospital is one of the few general hospitals that provide treatment for temporomandibular disorders.

(8) Pediatric Dentistry: This subspecialty provides dedicated dental diagnosis, treatment and health-management services for children and adolescents under 18 years of age. It covers situations such as childhood tooth decay, toothache, primary-tooth lesions, dentition disorders during the mixed-dentition period, dental fear and poor cooperation. Its core services include the prevention and treatment of caries in primary and young permanent teeth, fillings for primary teeth, root canal treatment of primary teeth and prefabricated crowns for primary teeth. For children with premature loss of primary teeth, it provides space-maintainer treatment to prevent dentition deformities. It is skilled in managing common problems such as dental trauma in children, retained primary teeth and supernumerary tooth extraction. For very young children who are extremely fearful and unable to cooperate with treatment, it provides sequential pediatric dental treatment under general anesthesia with comfort-focused care, addressing multiple caries throughout the mouth in a single treatment session. It also provides long-term preventive and healthcare programs such as pediatric oral-health education, fluoride application and pit-and-fissure sealing, and establishes lifelong oral-health records for children.

(9) Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology: This subspecialty undertakes all types of oral imaging examinations, imaging diagnosis and preoperative evaluation. It covers imaging examination needs related to the diagnosis and treatment of dental diseases, surgical procedures, orthodontics and implantation. It can clearly display anatomical structures and lesions such as tooth roots, alveolar bone, occult caries, unerupted teeth and cysts, helping ensure precise and safe treatment. It routinely performs panoramic dental radiographs, frontal and lateral cephalometric radiographs, localized dental radiographs and cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT). It precisely obtains imaging data on the anatomical structures of teeth, alveolar bone, jawbones, root canals, unerupted teeth, cysts, tumors and the temporomandibular joints. These data provide precise imaging evidence for orthodontic treatment planning, preoperative bone-volume assessment for implants, root canal treatment, surgical procedures, and screening of mucosal and jaw lesions. The subspecialty provides precise, safe and reliable technical support for the clinical diagnosis and treatment provided by all dental departments.

Featured Technologies

(1) High-End Full-Process Digital Diagnosis and Treatment System: The department has established an integrated diagnosis and treatment model combining oral data acquisition, virtual treatment-plan design, digital processing and fabrication, and precise clinical adaptation. It applies intraoral scanning, three-dimensional modeling, 3D printing and intelligent treatment-plan design throughout all diagnostic and treatment scenarios, including orthodontic treatment, implant restoration, restoration of tooth defects and anterior aesthetic reconstruction. This greatly improves diagnostic and treatment precision, shortens the treatment cycle, optimizes the care process, and achieves efficient, precise and standardized dental care.

(2) Regional Benchmark Department for Dental Aesthetics: In 2019, the department established Xiamen’s first dental aesthetics studio, focusing on anterior aesthetic restoration, aesthetic reshaping with veneers, facial and occlusal aesthetic design, and personalized optimization of oral appearance. Relying on a multidisciplinary MDT collaborative diagnosis and treatment model, it overcomes the limitations of single-treatment approaches and combines the patient’s occlusal function, facial proportions and lip-to-tooth relationship to create an individualized digital aesthetic design. It simultaneously completes oral functional reconstruction and facial aesthetic optimization, reshaping a natural and attractive dentition while restoring the masticatory function of the teeth, and comprehensively improving the patient’s oral health, appearance and overall presence.

(3) Province-Leading Department for Comfortable, Pain-Free Diagnosis and Treatment: In 2020, the department took the lead among public hospitals in the province in opening a pain-free dental treatment outpatient clinic. It formed a joint diagnosis and treatment team of anesthesia and dental specialists, integrating behavior guidance, psychological intervention, continuous monitoring, precise sedation and analgesia, and standardized four-handed operating techniques to effectively relieve patients’ fear and anxiety about dental treatment. It routinely provides distinctive services including pain-free minimally invasive implantation, minimally invasive complex tooth extraction, minimally invasive laser treatment, various oral surgeries and treatments under sedation and analgesia, and one-stop treatment of oral diseases under general anesthesia, creating a safe, comfortable and humane modern dental diagnosis and treatment service.

(4) Microscopic Precision Dental Diagnosis and Treatment: The department has opened a microscopic treatment outpatient clinic. With the high magnification and precise illumination system of a dental operating microscope, it provides refined diagnosis and treatment of complex and difficult diseases of the dental pulp and periapical tissues. For difficult cases such as calcified and obstructed root canals, curved root canals, root canal retreatment, apical surgery and exploration for tooth fractures, it overcomes the limitations of unaided-eye operations, magnifies the internal view of the root canals, precisely removes infected lesions, preserves natural teeth to the greatest extent and improves the success rate of difficult root canal treatment. With minimally invasive treatment, precision and tooth preservation as its core objectives, it provides professional and refined solutions for the treatment of high-difficulty oral diseases.

(5) Multidisciplinary Diagnosis and Treatment of Mouth Breathing in Adolescents: In response to the high incidence of mouth breathing among children and adolescents, the department has opened a specialty outpatient clinic for adolescent mouth breathing and pioneered the 1+X multidisciplinary diagnosis and treatment model. In cooperation with relevant specialties, it has established a whole-course management system for correction of breathing habits and early intervention for maxillofacial deformities. Through individualized programs such as myofunctional training and early orthodontic treatment, it provides early intervention for maxillofacial developmental deformities and irregular dentition caused by mouth breathing, achieving synchronized improvement in children’s facial form and oral function.

(6) Standardized Diagnosis and Treatment of Parotid and Submandibular Gland Diseases: The department has established a specialty outpatient clinic for parotid and submandibular gland diseases and created a closed-loop diagnostic and treatment pathway of screening, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation. Relying on the multidisciplinary advantages of a general hospital, it provides refined minimally invasive diagnosis and treatment of salivary gland diseases and standardized, individualized diagnostic and treatment plans for glandular diseases. This covers whole-process management of various lesions of the parotid and submandibular glands, including inflammation, stones, tumors and functional disorders.

Comprehensive Multidisciplinary MDT Diagnosis and Treatment and Whole-Course Management

The department relies on the multidisciplinary collaboration advantages of a tertiary Grade A general hospital, breaks down the boundaries between specialties and establishes an MDT collaboration mechanism covering multiple types of diseases. In dental aesthetics diagnosis and treatment, it integrates the strengths of the operative dentistry and endodontics, periodontology, prosthodontics and orthodontics subspecialties, and formulates individualized plans based on patients’ facial proportions, lip-to-tooth relationships and occlusal function, achieving coordinated optimization of function and aesthetics. In adolescent mouth-breathing diagnosis and treatment, it works with otolaryngology, voice medicine, respiratory medicine and pediatrics to establish a full-cycle management pathway from etiological screening and habit correction to intervention in maxillofacial development. In the diagnosis and treatment of oral and maxillofacial tumors and salivary gland diseases, it works with anesthesia, pathology, imaging and other related specialties to provide standardized and individualized comprehensive diagnosis and treatment plans. In comfortable diagnosis and treatment, it forms a joint team of anesthesia and dental specialists, providing safety monitoring throughout the entire process for children, patients with dental anxiety and patients undergoing complex surgery. At the same time, the department has established a complete full-cycle patient health-management system. For patients with periodontal disease, it establishes a lifelong periodontal health follow-up system, regularly tracks periodontal health, provides long-term maintenance guidance, effectively controls periodontal inflammation and delays tooth loosening and loss. For patients with oral mucosal diseases, it provides long-term follow-up management, with particular attention to monitoring premalignant lesions to achieve early detection, early intervention and early treatment. For children receiving care, it establishes lifelong oral-health records and provides continuous oral-health services from preventive care and disease diagnosis and treatment to growth and development intervention. In this way, it provides the general public with whole-process oral-health management covering prevention, diagnosis and treatment, rehabilitation and maintenance.

Expert Team

The Department of Stomatology has a professional medical team with a well-balanced structure, excellent technical skills and a complete professional echelon. The department has strong core personnel, with 2 chief physicians and 5 deputy chief physicians leading discipline development and clinical advancement. The academic leader is Chief Physician Ye Zhanchao, who is also the department’s administrative director. Chief Physician Ye has worked in clinical dental implantology and prosthodontics for more than 20 years, focusing on minimally invasive implantation, comfortable implantation and digital implantation. He took the lead in carrying out digitally navigated immediate implantation and immediate restoration for single teeth, multiple teeth, half-arch edentulous jaws and full-arch edentulous jaws. He has extensive clinical experience in implant-supported denture restoration, fixed denture restoration, suction-retained denture restoration and removable denture restoration for various types of tooth loss and jawbone defects. He has led multiple provincial- and municipal-level research projects and received the Third Prize of the Fujian Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award. He concurrently serves as a committee member of the Sixth Committee of the Oral Physicians Branch of the Chinese Medical Doctor Association; a standing committee member of the Fourth Professional Committee of Oral Aesthetics of the Chinese Stomatological Association; a committee member of the Seventh Professional Committee of Prosthodontics of the Chinese Stomatological Association; a standing council member of the Third Council of the Dental and Maxillofacial Medical Aesthetics Branch of the Chinese Association of Plastics and Aesthetics; a committee member of the Expert Committee of the Oral Health Care Branch of the Chinese Society of Gerontology and Geriatrics; a standing council member of the Fujian Stomatological Association; deputy chair of the Oral Aesthetics Professional Committee of the Fujian Stomatological Association; a standing committee member of the Oral Physicians Branch of the Fujian Medical Doctor Association; a standing committee member of the Dental Implantology Professional Committee of the Fujian Stomatological Association; vice president of the Xiamen Stomatological Association; a council member of the China Society of the International Association of Oral Implantologists; and a committee member of the International Committee for Maxillofacial Reconstruction.

The department’s educational attainment ranks among the leading levels in the region. Staff members with master’s degrees or above account for 97%, and the department has developed a highly educated, professional and young talent echelon. It currently has approximately 44 medical and nursing personnel, including 2 staff members with doctoral-level education and 26 with master’s-level education. The team’s physicians have extensive clinical experience and finely differentiated specialty responsibilities. They work intensively in the subspecialty fields of oral and maxillofacial surgery, dental implantology, prosthodontics, orthodontics, operative dentistry and endodontics, periodontology, pediatric dentistry, oral mucosal diseases and oral imaging. They combine solid clinical practical abilities with advanced digital and aesthetic diagnostic and treatment concepts and can provide standardized and precise diagnostic and treatment services for patients with all types of common and difficult oral diseases.

Coordinated Development of Medical Care, Education and Research

(1) Medical Services: The department has always adhered to a patient-centered approach. Relying on its nine-subspecialty structure, four distinctive diagnostic and treatment platforms, and advanced hardware and equipment, it comprehensively provides the complete set of diagnostic and treatment services offered by a dental department in a tertiary Grade A hospital. It has established a full-chain oral healthcare system from preventive care and basic treatment to functional restoration and aesthetic reconstruction. It routinely provides distinctive medical services such as digital diagnosis and treatment, comfortable pain-free diagnosis and treatment, microscopic precision diagnosis and treatment, and aesthetic restoration. It covers the full range of oral-health needs of people of all ages and provides patients with one-stop professional, precise, minimally invasive, comfortable and aesthetically pleasing oral-health services.

(2) Education and Training: As a national standardized residency training base in stomatology, the department became an internship base of the School of Stomatology of Fujian Medical University in 2009. In addition, it has long undertaken clinical observation, internship instruction, postgraduate training and research-personnel training for several higher-education institutions, including the School of Medicine of Xiamen University and Xiamen Medical College. It has established a standardized clinical teaching and skills-training system, continuously produces highly qualified dental professionals, and is an important training base for stomatology professionals in southern Fujian.

(3) Scientific Research and Innovation: The department attaches great importance to clinical research and technological innovation. It conducts clinical research and technology transfer in areas including digital dental diagnosis and treatment, comfortable treatment, oral aesthetic reconstruction, diagnosis and treatment of difficult diseases of the dental hard tissues and dental pulp, and diagnosis and treatment of oral and maxillofacial diseases. In recent years, more than ten research projects at various levels, including projects of the Fujian Provincial Natural Science Foundation and Xiamen Science and Technology Plan projects, have been approved. More than ten SCI papers and more than 30 papers in national core journals have been published, and multiple provincial- and municipal-level medical science and technology awards and clinical teaching case awards have been received. The department continues to promote the standardized and precise upgrading of clinical diagnostic and treatment technology.