Plackers, a provider of consumer oral care products, has partnered with Oral Health America to donate dental flossers that will reach more than 30,000 children in need through the Smiles Across America program. Smiles Across America is a program created by Oral Health America to improve the oral health of elementary school students who lack access to routine dental care. The program supports oral disease prevention services in school-based or
As the field of dental implantology continues to have a significant effect on dental treatment planning, the American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) recently reaffirmed its position that, whenever reasonable, efforts should be made to save a patient’s natural dentition. The AAP also stressed that an evidence-based approach must always be taken when considering an individual’s treatment options, especially regarding surgical procedures such as tooth extraction and dental implant placement. “There
Clinicians who determined shade using visual observation performed better than a colorimeter in a recent study, which will be presented at the upcoming International Association for Dental Research conference in Barcelona, Spain. Researchers from Ankara University and Ohio State University sought to compare the accuracy of an intraoral colorimeter and visual shade determination. They prepared metal-ceramic specimens of five different shades (A1, B1, C3, D3, and A3.5) of the Vitapan
A new trial is scheduled to begin June 2 for the Fosamax/osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ) case that ended in a mistrial last September, according to a story on aboutlawsuits.com. The lawsuit involves a claim by Shirley Boles, 71, who alleges that she developed ONJ in 2003 after using the drug for several years. According to Boles, Merck — manufacturer of Fosamax — failed to adequately warn about the risk
Researchers at Columbia University have claimed another advance in the quest to grow biological teeth that could eventually be used instead of implants. Writing in the Journal of Dental Research (May 6, 2010), the researchers said they had used growth factors to stimulate cells to grow along a scaffold in the shape of a human molar and also in the shape of a rat incisor. Researchers in previous experiments have
Many dentists may be using their curing lights badly, with some baking their patients’ teeth and others leaving restorations uncured, a study by Dalhousie University researchers suggests. “Most dentists think if you waft the light in the mouth somewhere, it’s going to cure the restoration,” said Richard Price, B.D.S., D.D.S., M.S., a Dalhousie professor of prosthodontics. “We’ve discovered that there is a huge difference among operators. It can be an
In an effort to find ways to reduce dental implant failure rates, a researcher from Griffith University has used computer modeling software to study the stress created in the mandible during and after the placement of titanium implants. While dental implants are gaining popularity and new materials and production methods are improving the technology, a 5% failure rate is still believed to be associated with incorrect insertion techniques and a
A defective, mutant strain of the bacterium that causes periodontal disease could provide a clue to potential treatments for Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and a number of other diseases, according to researchers from the University of Florida College of Dentistry who reported their findings May 25 at the American Society for Microbiology meeting in San Diego. Autophagy, or “self-eating,” is an essential component of cellular survival and defense against invading organisms. It
A United Nations (UN) committee meeting in Stockholm June 7-11 will begin drawing up a legally binding international treaty on mercury reduction that could restrict dental amalgam. The proceedings may include clashes between amalgam foes and dentists’ groups. In a preliminary cost-benefit analysis, the staff for the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) estimated that some strategies for reducing amalgam use — such as installing separators
When it comes to kids’ oral healthcare, California is far from being the Golden State. California children’s dental health was ranked third from the bottom in the National Survey of Children’s Health, above only Arizona and Texas. The survey found that in 2007, the last year that data was available, more than 500,000 California children between the ages of 5 and 17 missed at least one day of school a
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has acquired NovaMin Technologies, makers of a calcium phosphate oral product ingredient, for 87 million pounds ($135 million as of December 2009), the company announced. The deal suggests that GlaxoSmithKline, one of the word’s largest pharmaceutical companies, sees a bright future in calcium phosphate products, which have been marketed as a way of reducing dentin sensitivity and remineralizing enamel. According to an article in the Gainesville Sun, NovaMin,
Five Rice University students have created a portable dental suction device, an inexpensive, battery-powered version of the vacuum system commonly used in dentists’ offices. Faculty at the University of Texas Dental Branch-Houston (UTDB-H) have long been aware of the need for a portable dental suction device and turned to Rice students to see how they could help, the university noted in a press release. The goal was clear: The unit
