Grammar in Use: Dentistry

•

To talk about a future happening or a future situation.

Future Simple

I / we you / they + will + verb he / she / it

I will send you a copy of the latest article on oral cancer as soon as I get it.

She will attend the European Congress next year.

Dentistry will be very different in a hundred years time.

• To say that we will be in the middle of something at a certain time in the future.

Future Continuous  Will be + gerund of the verb (verb +ing)

This time tomorrow morning he will be attending the conference on medications and the CNS.

I will be examining this patient tomorrow at 3 p.m.  

• To say that something will already have the result before a certain time in the future.

Future Perfect  Will have + past participle of the verb.

  I think the doctor will already have arrived

by the time we begin the procedure. Our doctor will have consulted you by the

end of the week. You will have received the schedule by 5

o’clock.

Past Simple  • To talk about actions or situations in the

past (they have already finished): I enjoyed the course of Anatomy last term. • To say that one thing happened after

another: Yesterday we had a terrible duty. • To talk about happenings and actions that

are not connected with the present (historical events):

Fleming discovered penicillin.

Past Simple The simple past has the following forms: • Affirmative: The past of the regular verbs is formed by adding -

ed to the infinitive (treated). The past of the irregular verbs has its own form

(write – wrote). • Negative:

Did/didn't + the base form of the verb. • Questions: ± Did I/you/. . . + the base form of the verb

To say that someone was in the middle of doing something at a certain time.

Past Continuous  Was/were + gerund of the verb.

This time last year I was writing an article on

lipid metabolism. The doctor was examining the patient when the

nurse entered the ward. The dentist was measuring the depth of

periodontal pocket at 6 o’clock yesterday. When I entered the hospital, many patients were

waiting in the corridor.

Past Perfect  Shows an action that happened in the past

before another past action.   Had + past participle of the verb.

Past Perfect is used:  • To say that something had already

happened before something else happened:

When I arrived at the meeting, the chairman had already begun his presentation.

We use adverbial modifiers of time: by 5 o'clock, by the end of the year:

• He had sent his abstracts to the Congress by the 1st of June.

MODAL VERBS    

Modal verb Meaning Example

Can(past form – “could”)

abilityOne can classify developmental abnormalities of teeth into several categories

May(past form – “might”)

permission or

possibility

Genetic factors may cause abnormalities of tooth development

Must(past form – “had to”)

obligationFor treating class III malocclusion, a direct cause must be identified

Should (past form – “should

have + past participle“)

advice You should give up smoking

MODAL VERBS Overcrowding of teeth can cause dental caries and

gingivitis. Anomalies of bite can be hereditary. Enamel hypocalcification may affect all teeth in the

dentition. The patient may leave the hospital. The patient must follow the doctor’s prescription. Dental diseases must be promptly diagnosed and

treated at the early stages. You should follow the doctor’s instructions.

Video: Pulpitis In general, two damage mechanisms that may cause

an inflammation of the pulp can be distinguished. But a bone infection may also develop in the

absence of bacteria. Bacteria feed off the tissue residue and can multiply

without hindrance. An insufficient amount of immune cells may

contribute to the development of an infectious reaction in the bone.

The “migrating bacteria” settle in places where they can escape the immune system.

Video: Pulpitis Years later, a root canal sclerosis may lead to a root

resorption. If there is an infectious focus, a spreading of the

bacteria may occur. There may still be cell debris attached to the walls. Sometimes, all these processes may occur

simultaneously in a tooth. One should also not forget that every patient

experiences pain differently. That is why every focus of infection should be

treated irrespective of its developmental history.