Vibrating injections don’t hurt permanent tooth buds

Does using computer-controlled local anesthetic delivery (C-CLAD) technology — such as the STA system from Milestone Scientific — for an intraligamentary (ILI) injection on primary teeth in pediatric patients cause damage to the underlying, developing adult permanent tooth? Not according to a new study in the International Journal of Paediatric Dentistry (July 2010, Vol. 20:4, pp. 270-275). Intraligamental anesthesia delivered by a high-pressure syringe is often associated with damage to

Zimmer launches collagen capsules, wedge

Zimmer Dental has announced the availability of Zimmer Collagen Capsules and the shape-retaining Zimmer Collagen Wedge, which can be used during sinus lifts, socket repair, and other wound-healing applications. The Collagen Capsules support focused bone augmentation, and can be used in crestal and lateral sinus lift procedures, according to Zimmer. These capsules, which can be positioned with the Zimmer Sinus Lift Balloon or other delivery instruments, are intended for repairing

Dentium offers advanced sinus kit

Dentium USA has introduced a sinus elevation kit called DASK (Dentium Advanced Sinus Kit), a new surgical approach for a reliable sinus lift procedure. Instruments included in the new kit provide straightforward exposure to the sinus cavity, reducing chair time and decreasing postsurgery discomfort, according to the company. Dental professionals can perform both crestal and lateral approaches with the DASK. The DASK’s diamond-coated burs were designed to help prevent sinus

Fla. county gets $200K for mobile dental van

Florida’s Bay County Health Department has received two $100,000 grants to purchase and operate a mobile dental van, according to a story in the News Herald. The health department received one grant from the Blue Foundation for a Healthy Florida and the other from the Florida Department of Health. “We will establish the Miles of Smiles program for children,” grant writer Aleksandra Schippnick told the News Herald. “It will include

Natural mouthwash may help heal perio disease

DeepSea Gold Laboratories has introduced ExtraRobusteen, a medicinal mouthwash that helps heal practically any oral disease, mouth pain, gum inflammation, swelling, and bleeding, the company claims. DeepSea Gold’s medicinal mouthwashes contain natural salts, minerals, and microelements derived from the ocean, according to the company’s website. As a natural antiseptic, the mouthwashes fight 300 different types of oral bacteria, DeepSea Gold said. In addition, they contain magnesium, bromide, and iodine to

Kids’ jewelry distributed at dental offices recalled

Nearly 70,000 charm bracelets and football rings that were distributed for free at some U.S. dental offices over the past several years have been recalled by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). The jewelry, which was imported from China, contains high levels of cadmium, a toxic mineral that can weaken bones and kidneys over time. The bracelets and rings were distributed from June 2005 through March 2010. The CPSC

VA dental clinic chief suspended

The chief of dental services at the John Cochran St. Louis Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center has been placed on administrative leave after the hospital notified more than 1,800 veterans that they may have been exposed to hepatitis, HIV, and other bloodborne pathogens in the hospital’s dental clinic. On June 28, the VA sent letters to 1,812 veterans who had dental procedures at the St. Louis clinic from February 1,

Orthodontic patients should help in treatment planning

Patients should play a role in formulating orthodontic retention plans, according to a new study (Angle Orthodontist, July 2010, Vol. 80:4, pp. 656-661). Researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University Dental School wanted to discern patients’ opinions regarding responsibility for orthodontic retention and determine whether patient attitudes toward retention are related to perceptions of treatment success. They surveyed 428 patients who had completed fixed orthodontic treatment an average of 5.3 years previously

Technicians settle lawsuit with UNC dental school

Two dental lab technicians at the University of North Carolina (UNC) School of Dentistry who lost their jobs in 2007 when the dental school planned to outsource their work to private laboratories reached a settlement in their suit in April, according to a news story in the Chapel Hill News. Their lawsuit accused UNC of not following its own Reduction in Force policies, which require the school to explore alternatives

Fla. dentist develops cosmetic dentistry iPhone app

Miami Beach, FL, dentist Jared Plitt, D.M.D., has designed a cosmetic dentistry application that can be used with the iPod Touch, iPad, and iPhone. The Cosmetic Dentistry Calculator provides a starting point for aesthetic case planning and is a useful diagnostic tool that can be used chairside during patient consultations, according to Dr. Plitt. It is intended for dentists, dental students, dental ceramists, and lab technicians. The app features a

VA clinic patients may have been exposed to hepatitis, HIV

Failure to properly clean dental instruments may have put more than 1,800 patients at a Veterans Affairs (VA) clinic at risk for hepatitis and HIV. Patients who went to the John Cochran St. Louis VA Medical Center dental clinic in Missouri between February 2009 and March 2010 may have been exposed, according to a report by KSDK TV. The VA began notifying 1,812 potentially at-risk patients via certified letters on

‘David After Dentist’ family to make dental scrubs

The DeVore family — famous for videotaping son David under the influence of dental anesthesia and posting it on the Internet — has signed a deal to make dental scrubs and is looking for other dental-related business opportunities, according to an article on the San Francisco Chronicle website, sfgate.com. “We’d love it if Crest or Colgate would sponsor the website,” dad David E. DeVore told the Business Insider. The DeVores