A 100-Year Journey from GV Black to Minimal Surgical Intervention

Abstract

Over the past 140 years, dentistry has matured from the original tenets of GV Black by moving from “extension for prevention” to a minimal intervention approach. This is part of an evolution that stresses a medical, rather than a surgical model for caries management. This transition has been facilitated by the introduction and advancement of adhesive dentistry, which encourages preservation of tooth structure. Even with these changes, some of the original writings of Black are still relevant today: “The day is surely coming…when we will be engaged in practicing preventive, rather than reparative, dentistry.”