A European core curriculum in cariology: the knowledge base

This paper is part of a series of papers towards a European Core Curriculum in Cariology for undergraduate dental students. The European Core Curriculum in Cariology is the outcome of a joint workshop of the European Organization for Caries Research (ORCA) together with the Association for Dental Education in Europe (ADEE), which was held in Berlin from 27 to 30 June 2010. This paper presents a closer look at the knowledge base as presented in the European Core Curriculum in Cariology. It comprises not only traditional basic sciences, such as anatomy and histology, but also emerging sciences such as molecular biology and nanotechnology and also fields such as behavioural sciences and research methodology. The different supporting competences are elaborated and explained. The problems of implementing a curriculum that truly integrates this foundation knowledge into the clinical teaching are discussed.