Aspen Dental is partnering with Oral Health America (OHA) in support of OHA’s National Spit Tobacco Education Program (NSTEP), an oral health education and oral cancer prevention program, at the Little League Baseball World Series, August 21-30 in Williamsport, PA. The program focuses on educating young athletes and parents about the importance of good oral health, the dangers of tobacco use, and the prevention of oral cancer. Aspen Dental will
Dental researchers are likely to share in the $1.1 billion the U.S. government is spending on comparative effectiveness research (CER), if the findings of a new report from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) are taken to heart. The report, released in June by the IOM’s newly formed Committee on Comparative Effectiveness Research Prioritization (CCERP), recommends 100 priorities for CER, including two specific to oral health: comparing the effectiveness of various
Gingival augmentation surgery appeared to succeed in decreasing recession in a long-term retrospective split-mouth study (Journal of Periodontology, May 22, 2009). Investigators from the University of Florence looked at the mouths of 55 subjects in which 73 sites of recessive gingiva were treated with gingival grafts and 73 contralateral sites were not treated over a period of 10-27 years. The grafted sites were treated with either submarginal or marginal free
The average full-time dental hygienist in the U.S. made $34.40 an hour in 2006, according to a new report by the ADA. The data was released this year, but based on a survey completed by 1,968 dentists in 2007 about salaries they paid employees the year before. The hourly wages varied greatly, with a standard deviation of ± $10.80 for hygienists. On a weekly basis, hygienists working for generalists made
A growing number of Australians are having their mouths filled with cheap and potentially toxic dental prosthetics from unregulated overseas laboratories, according to a story in the Sydney Morning Herald. Lead, nickel, cadmium, and beryllium are being added to ceramic-covered prosthetics by manufacturers in many Asian countries, Robert Boshier, president of Oral Health Professionals Association’s College of Dental Technicians, told the Herald. Australian dentists are increasingly turning to less expensive
A new laser technique can clean root canals better than conventional instruments and more safely than other laser techniques, the inventors claimed at the recent World Congress of Minimally Invasive Dentistry (WCMID) in San Francisco. A new tip they have developed for Lares Research’s PowerLase sends acoustic waves into tiny, curved and otherwise inaccessible canals, said Enrico DiVito, D.D.S., and Mark Colonna, D.D.S. Using lasers can reduce the patient’s discomfort
The Manufacturing and Technology Institute in Poughkeepsie, NY, is offering a new program that will train students in the design, fabrication, and production of dental prosthesis, according to a news story in the Poughkeepsie Journal. The Dental Laboratory Technician Program at the Dutchess BOCES Adult Education Division will offer certification from the Dental Laboratory Association of the State of New York in as few as 10 months and also advanced
A 2004 state-level Medicaid policy change in Wisconsin significantly increased the provision of fluoride varnish treatments (FVT) to children in the state, according to a study by Christopher Okunseri, B.D.S., M.Sc., an associate professor and director of the dental public health program at the Marquette University School of Dentistry. In the two years following the policy change, which allowed primary medical care providers to be reimbursed for FVT provided to
An Illinois woman who says she sustained severe and permanent injuries following a series of root canals and an implant is suing her dentist, alleging he was unqualified to perform some of the procedures. She is seeking more than $50,000 in damages. According to a complaint filed in Madison County Circuit Court, Jennifer Van Wyk is suffering from bone loss, extreme pain, and a severe infection following a series of
Volunteers are needed for the Iowa Mission of Mercy free dental clinic planned for September 25-26 at the Iowa Speedway in Newton, according to the Courier newspaper. Dentists, assistants, hygienists, and members of the public are needed to help serve more than 1,000 expected patients. Last fall, more than 900 volunteers served 1,200 patients. Volunteers can sign up for shifts on the Iowa Mission of Mercy Web site. Copyright ©
New figures from the U.K. National Health Service (NHS) indicate that the number of complex dental treatments being performed in the country is on the decline, according to a news story from the Press Association. While the overall number of treatments has risen by more than a million in the last year, those for procedures such as bridges and root canals have been dropping, the news service reported. Comparing numbers
Komet USA has developed an innovative laboratory diamond disk suited for deflasking pressed ceramic material. The 924XC.HP.400 is a large 40-mm disk designed for cutting deeper into investment material with a supercoarse grit of 357 microns, marked with a black ring, according to Komet. Developed in conjunction with dental technician Klaus Ernst, the 924XC.HP.400 has an open mesh design with the “Komet spiral.” Its flange construction allows for stability and