What is a digital odontogram and how do you fill it in?
The digital odontogram is the patient's dental chart inside the patient record: each tooth has its own recorded condition and notes. You fill it in by clicking a tooth on screen, not on paper.
Short answer
- The digital odontogram is an interactive map of all 32 teeth, with each one's current status.
- You fill it in by clicking a tooth and recording its condition and a note on it.
- The usual notation is FDI (two digits: the quadrant and the tooth position), the same used in medical records.
- Every entry stays in the record's history, with its date.
- Teeth you mark for treatment can be added to a treatment plan, with their stages.
How to fill it in, step by step
- Open the patient record and go to the odontogram section.
- Click the tooth in question on the chart.
- Note the affected area of the tooth in the record.
- Record the condition you found on the tooth.
- Add the clinical note and link the X-ray or photo to the patient record.
- Mark the teeth that need treatment and add them to the treatment plan.
FDI notation in brief
The quadrants in FDI notation for permanent teeth
| Quadrant | First digit | Range |
|---|---|---|
| Upper right | 1 | 11–18 |
| Upper left | 2 | 21–28 |
| Lower left | 3 | 31–38 |
| Lower right | 4 | 41–48 |
Practical example
Example: the patient comes in with pain on the upper right molar. You click tooth 16, record its condition, add a note such as 'possible root canal' and link the X-ray to the patient record. The tooth then appears on the treatment plan, where the procedure and its stage are recorded.
Common mistakes
- Recording only the current status and not marking existing work — at the next check-up you cannot see what had already been done.
- Keeping the odontogram on paper and using the software only for scheduling: the per-tooth history is lost.
- Attaching the X-ray to a separate folder instead of the tooth — nobody finds it at the second visit.
How 4dental helps
- An interactive odontogram in FDI notation, with records kept per tooth.
- X-rays and photos linked to the patient record, not kept in a separate folder.
- A treatment plan where you add the teeth that need work, with stages and each item's state: proposed, accepted, scheduled or done.