• A dentist is a doctor who specializes in conditions of the oral cavity.dentist 07 image by Dragan Bombek from Fotolia.com
  
  A dentist is a doctor who specializes in diagnosing, preventing and treating conditions and diseases of the oral cavity (mouth) and the maxillofacial area (face, neck and jaw). According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 141,900 dentists were in the United States in the year 2008--a number that is expected to rise by 16 percent to 164,000 by the year 2018.
  
  

Pediatric Dentists

• Pediatric dentists, also called paedodontics/pedodontics, specialize in providing oral and dental treatments to infants, young children and teens. They focus on teaching children good dental habits through early prevention and treatment and provide appropriate dental care. Pediatric dentists follow up four years of dental school education with another two to three years of specializing in pediatric oral care.
  
  

Endodontists

• Endodontists are dentists who specialize in root canal therapy. Root canal therapy focuses on removing untreatable dental pulp when it becomes infected or inflamed. Like other types of dentists, endodontists are required to complete additional years of specialization after four years of dental school.
  
  

Periodontists

• Periodontists are dentists who specialize in diagnosing and treating diseases of the bones and gums surrounding the teeth, such as periodontal disease and gingivitis. They typically complete three years of specialization after four years of mandatory dental school.
  
  

Oral Surgeons

• Oral surgeons, also called maxillofacial surgeons, are dental specialists that diagnose and treat a wide range of defects and injuries of the gums, mouth, teeth, neck, jaw and face. They typically follow up four years of mandatory dental school education with another four years of hospital surgical residency. Oral surgeons treat victims of facial trauma; people with cancers (tumors and cysts) of the face, neck and head; children and adults with congenital malformations, such as palate and cleft lip; and individuals with facial pain disorders.
  
  

Orthodontists

• Orthodontists are dentists who complete a two- to three-year accredited residency orthodontic program after four years of dental college. Orthodontics specialize in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of dental irregularities, such as malocclusions (misaligned teeth), overbites, jaw alignments and underbites.