New ADHA research center to aid evidence-based approach

The American Dental Hygienists’ Association (ADHA) has launched a new Survey/Research Center. “Advancing the dental hygiene profession and building our association require solid data to facilitate the decision-making process,” said ADHA President Lynn Ramer, L.D.H., in a press release. “Increasingly, top-performing professional associations consistently use data for decision making. The ADHA Survey/Research Center will formalize the data-gathering process for our profession and allow us to make solid, data-based decisions.” McKenzie

Water fluoridation debate heats up in Louisiana town

Opponents of water fluoridation in Walker, LA, are calling on the Board of Aldermen to reconsider a decision to inject fluoride into the town water supply, according to a news story in The Advocate. Under the plan being devised for the Walker water system, 0.8 parts per million of the chemical would be added to the system, said a fluoridation engineer with the state’s Department of Health and Hospitals in

Connecticut to try dental therapists; the key to good shade matching

Dear DrBicuspid Member, Connecticut looks to be the next state in the U.S. to experiment with the midlevel provider model. And in this case, the state dental association supports the idea. In an effort to take control of the issue “before someone else takes control of it for us,” the Connecticut State Dental Association’s House of Delegates voted in November to set up a demonstration project using dental therapists. But

Study finds weaker margins with self-etch

Restorations placed with etch-and-rinse adhesives had tighter margins than restorations placed with single-bottle self-etch adhesives in a study published online January 5 in Clinical Oral Investigations. Many new self-etch adhesives have come onto the market recently, noted the researchers from the International University of Catalonia, Spain; the University of Geneva, Switzerland; and the University Center of Barretos, Brazil. In these systems, adhesive, etch, and primer are all contained in one

Zest Anchors now part of the Jordan Company

The Jordan Company announced that its Resolute Fund II has acquired 100% of the assets and business of Zest Anchors, a family-owned and operated manufacturer of dental attachments. The acquisition, which was completed on December 31, 2009, was made in partnership with the Zuest family and certain members of management. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Founded in 1972, Zest is the “leading manufacturer of overdenture attachments in the

Conn. dentists vote to try dental therapists

Despite opposition from other professional groups, the Connecticut State Dental Association (CSDA) wants to bring dental health aide therapists into the state for a pilot program. The only dental therapists currently practicing in the U.S. are limited to treating indigenous people in Alaska, but Minnesota has begun training a new class of oral health practitioners in that state as well. .pullQuoteCredit { align:right; text-align:right; font-family:arial, sans-serif; font-size:11px; line-height: 16px; font-style:

Experience counts when it comes to shade matching

The next time you are shade matching for anxious patients and tell them, “Relax, I’ve done this a million times,” you will have the weight of scientific research behind you. Clinical education and professional experience had a positive effect on a person’s ability to correctly match tooth shades, according to a new study in the Journal of the American Dental Association (January 2010, Vol. 141, pp. 71-76). Factors such as

Delcam updates CAD/CAM software

Delcam has released Delcam Dental 2010 SP2, which enhances previous versions of the program used by laboratories for CAD/CAM production of restorations, according to a press release. New features include: Reduced toolbars allow maximum screen space, but icons are bolder and clearer. The scanning software (now called DentScan) is fully integrated into DentCAD. DentMan now controls the DentMan, DentScan, and DentCAD modules, exchanging the data between the scanner, DentCAD, and

When it comes to tooth whitening, what’s all the fuss?

Editor’s note: Helaine Smith’s column, The Mouth Physician, appears regularly on the HuangshanDental.com advice and opinion page, Second Opinion. Teeth whitening continues to fascinate the public. It is the most frequent topic patients ask me about. This procedure generates lengthy phone conversations when they are booking the appointment. Additionally, news stations love reporting on mall-based whitening kiosks, presenting the pros and cons of having your teeth whitened by a nonprofessional.

OrthoSynetics adds Orthotrac to services portfolio

OrthoSynetics has partnered with Kodak Orthotrac and added Orthotrac software to OrthoSynetic’s practice management services and technologies, the company announced. “Adding the cutting-edge Orthotrac practice management software to our industry leading suite of business services will help practices improve their bottom lines,” said Chris Roussos, president and CEO of OrthoSynetics, in a press release. “Coupled with our full portfolio of business services, this strategic relationship will allow both organizations to

NYU and Sandia researchers to classify oral bacteria

Although the destructive effects of oral bacteria in producing dental caries, periodontal disease, and other infectious conditions are well known, the identities of many of the microbes responsible for these conditions, as well as their physical characteristics and ability to grow and sustain themselves, remain a mystery. Now, an NYU College of Dentistry (NYUCD) microbiologist and an engineer at Sandia National Laboratories are partnering to develop a technology that will

CR newsletter: Disinfect your preparations

Before bandaging a wound, you apply an antibiotic ointment. Before probing a tooth, you sterilize your explorer. So should you also disinfect a tooth before placing the restoration? Dentistry has gone back and forth on this question, wrote Rella Christensen, R.D.H., Ph.D., in the Gordon J. Christensen Clinicians Report (November 2009, Vol. 2:11, pp. 1-2), adding that in recent years most dentists have not worried much about disinfecting preparations. “If