EXPERT SYSTEMS IN DENTISTRY - PAST PERFORMANCE - FUTURE-PROSPECTS

Expert systems are knowledge-based computer programs designed to provi de assistance in diagnosis and treatment planning. They assist the pra ctitioner in decision making. A search of the literature on expert sys tem design for medical and dental applications was carried out. It sho wed an increase in the number of articles on this subject. Between 198 4 and 1991, 608 articles have been published in medical journals and t wo in dental journals. Because it is likely that this development will influence dental practice in the future a critical review of medical literature on the topic has also been carried out. A number of general principles are described to give the dental practitioner some insight into how expert systems work. A set of criteria have been formulated from the medical literature which expert systems should meet. These re quirements are also applicable to dentistry and may be used to judge d ental expert systems. In the last part of the paper the features of se veral dental expert systems developed in the past decade are described in the light of these criteria. It is concluded that in the future mo re attention should be paid to the development and evaluation of exper t systems in the clinical setting. Only well-designed and properly eva luated expert systems can be expected to earn a place in everyday prac tice.