Occam's Razor And Hickam's Dictum: The Transformation Of A Theoretical Discussion Into A Modern And Revolutionary Tool In Oral Diagnostics

In the fourteenth-century William of Ockham formulated a philosophical theory based on the principle of lex parsimoniae. This theory became known as Occam’s Razor. The Razor demands that one hypothesis be selected over another hypothesis, both being equally sound hypotheses, based on which one makes the fewest new assumptions. Occam’s Razor has survived and endured through the centuries making vital contributions to the work of Sir Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein, and, finally, to William Osler who introduced the theory to medicine. The twentieth-century saw many dramatic advances in medicine. Due to these great advances a shift in the hierarchy of diagnostic theories was in order. Dr. John B. Hickam, a 1940 graduate of Harvard University Medicine School and Chairman of the Department of Medicine at the University of Indiana, provided the medica l communi ty wi th a much needed counterargument to Occam’s Razor. Dr. Hickam basically stated that a patient’s signs and symptoms could be brought on by any number of ailments. Today, many individuals are living relatively symptom-free lives with such chronic ailments as diabetes, asthma, HIV, and epilepsy. This can lead to diagnostic challenges for the medical community as the patient might develop new ailments which might go undiagnosed due to the incorrect attribution of new signs and symptoms to disorders which had been previously diagnosed. Many times the dental profession is presented with a rare and precious opportunity to diagnose certain ailments in their earliest stages before an individual’s physician would be made aware of such new signs and symptoms. A collaborative effort is proposed. This collaboration would seek to apply a theoretical mathematical formula to the theories of Occam and Hickam with the development of a computer-based program to allow for the diagnosis of certain ailments (e.g. oral cancer) of the oral cavity and head/neck region in the earliest of stages. Introduction Discovery. The word discovery conjures up many different images and awakens various emotions inside each of us. The images can range from those visible only under the scientist’s microscope to the images of far-away planets and galaxies brought to us by satellites and telescopes. It can range from the toddler learning how to put one foot in front of the other to the explorer setting foot upon virgin territory. No matter the modality or scope of the discovery, one thing remains constantdiscovery is always a learning process.