Henry Schein inks distribution deal for VELscope Vx

Henry Schein Dental is now the exclusive distributor of LED Dental’s new VELscope Vx Enhanced Oral Assessment system in North America, the companies announced. The VELscope Vx system is the latest generation of VELscope technology. While retaining all of the capabilities of prior generations, its cordless design provides significantly greater portability and convenience, according to LED Dental. It sells for less than half that of previous models, and a reimbursement

GC America launches 3 flowable composites

GC America has launched a three-product family of flowable composites. G-ænial Universal Flo is a nanohybrid light-cured composite that has the easy handling of a low-flow flowable. Advancements in filler technology led to a new silanation process resulting in a product that is 69% (by weight) filled with 200 nm homogeneously dispersed particles. Tests have shown G-ænial Universal Flo is stronger and has better wear resistance than leading flowable and

Researchers ID link between alcohol, oral cancer

Acetaldehyde, a flavoring compound found in many beverages and foods, appears to be a major underlying factor for the carcinogenicity of alcoholic beverages, especially for esophageal and oral cancers, according to a new study in the Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research (January 6, 2011). A team of German and Russian researchers evaluated the role of acetaldehyde in alcoholic beverages as an additional factor in the etiology of oral

Head/neck cancer drug shows promise in clinical trials

CEL-SCI has begun a phase III clinical trial for Multikine, its flagship immunotherapy drug for head and neck cancer. The goal is to establish Multikine as a first-line standard of care therapy in treating newly diagnosed head and neck cancer patients. The trial, Immunotherapy Multikine Anti Tumor Treatments (IT-MATTERS), is believed to be the largest head and neck cancer study ever conducted, CEL-SCI said in a press release. The company

State officials mull legal action against Allcare

There has been an outpouring of outrage and support in the wake of this week’s unanticipated announcement that Allcare Dental & Dentures had closed all of its U.S. offices. According to the New York Attorney General’s (AG) Office, a year ago Allcare had 52 locations and employed 772 people in 15 states, including Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. But closings and consolidations since then

Ga. dental board wants hygienists to be supervised

The Georgia Board of Dentistry is proposing a rule change that would require indirect supervision of hygienists who provide basic preventive dental services in schools, community health centers, and prisons. But the state hygienists’ association and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) oppose the change, saying it would limit access to care, especially for children in rural and low-income communities. Currently, hygienists are permitted to work at dental facilities regulated by

Pulpdent ends PMGDM-based adhesives shortage

Pulpdent has developed a catalyst that successfully synthesizes PMGDM, a material essential for formulating certain dental adhesives. The chemical reaction that synthesizes the PMGDM molecule requires a special catalyst, and that catalyst suddenly became unavailable last summer, the company explained in a press release. This resulted in a worldwide stoppage of the production of the PMGDM used to manufacture these dental adhesives. After months of research, Pulpdent was able to

Private equity firm acquires OraPharma

Water Street Healthcare Partners, a strategic private equity firm focused exclusively on healthcare, has acquired OraPharma from Johnson & Johnson, saying it plans to build OraPharma into a leading specialty pharmaceutical company focused on dental and oral healthcare. While terms of the deal were not disclosed, Water Street has committed more than $100 million in equity financing to accelerate OraPharma’s growth, Kelly Zitlow, vice president of Water Street, told HuangshanDental.com.

Ohio teen dies after tooth extractions

A 13-year-old girl from Elyria, OH, died January 3, two weeks after having two teeth extracted by an oral surgeon. Marissa Kingery was undergoing oral surgery by Henry Mazorow, DDS, on December 21 when she was rushed by ambulance to Mercy Regional Medical Center in Lorain and placed on life support, according to a story in the Chronicle-Telegram. The girl was later taken to Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital in

Ortho Dental licenses novel perio disease treatment

Enox Biopharma, which specializes in solutions for infections associated with medical devices, has granted Ortho Dental Solutions (ODS) an exclusive royalty bearing license and rights to a patent application and know-how for use in developing novel therapies for dental and periodontal diseases. Under the terms of the agreement, ODS will use Enox Biopharma technologies to develop an innovative treatment for periodontal disease. Enox claims that its formulation has proved to

FTC: Ga. hygienists’ services shouldn’t be restricted

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is urging the Georgia Board of Dentistry to reject a proposal that would prohibit dental hygienists from providing basic preventive dental services in approved public health settings except under the indirect supervision of a dentist. There is no evidence that such supervision is necessary to prevent harm to dental patients, and the proposed rule amendments likely would raise the cost of dental services in Georgia

Finite element analysis aids orthodontic treatment planning

Finite element analysis combined with 3D modeling can yield a clinical orthodontic tool for planning tooth movement, according to a study in the American Journal of Orthodontics & Dentofacial Orthopedics (January 2011, Vol. 139:1, pp. e59-e71). Researchers from West Virginia University used anatomically accurate 3D models reconstructed from cone-beam CT scans to simulate the retraction of a single-rooted mandibular canine with a miniscrew placed as skeletal anchorage. Detailed stress distributions