Personnel

• Prof WFP van Heerden: Head: Department of Oral Pathology and Oral Biology
• Prof TJP Swart: Specialist in Oral Pathology &part time lecturer in Anatomical Pathology
• Dr T Kungoane: Specialist in Oral Pathology and senior lecturer

Courses

Anatomical Pathology (ANP370): A one year examination course in the third year of study for dental students (BChD III)

Course Content

Anatomical Pathology refers to the scientific study of diseases that embraces the functional and structural changes in disease, from the molecular level to the holistic effects on the individual patient. The undergraduate course in Anatomical Pathology is geared towards firstly, understanding the causes, mechanisms and characteristics of disease processes and secondly to understanding specific diseases as they affect individual organs and systems. Students are introduced to the enthralling scope of pathology, the dynamic techniques employed in reaching a diagnosis and the impact of pathologists on patient care.

Sir William Osler once said “the good physician treats the disease; the great physician treats the patient who has the disease”. The Anatomical pathology curriculum is structured such that the student acquires the skills and knowledge of basic pathology, disease mechanisms and systematic pathology. The successful dental student is thus able to approach oral disease biologically as a skilled physician.