Big companies are making big donations to put smiles on little faces for the ADA’s sixth annual Give Kids A Smile day. On February 1 more than 50,000 dental professionals around the country will provide free dental treatment to kids from low income families. “The ADA and dentists across the nation are engaged in creating public awareness of this critical need and trying to extend access to dental care to
Imagine waving a wand and — poof! — your patients’ teeth are protected from caries. It sounds like a page out of Harry Potter, but the fantasy took a step closer to reality this week. In the first-ever experiment using carbon dioxide lasers to pre-treat living teeth, researchers from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) say they achieved an 87 percent reduction in tooth decay. “It looks like an
Here’s an argument that will have your wayward patients back in the chair in a heartbeat. According to an article in the latest Journal of Periodontology, patients with a high level of systemic bacterial exposure — due to periodontal disease — are at a greater risk of developing cardiovascular disease. “Although there have been many studies associating gum disease with heart disease, what we have not known is exactly why
Taking bisphosphonates for osteoporosis can be like rain on your wedding day. Although bisphosphonate drugs are great at battling osteoporosis, they can also cause the rare, but serious condition of osteonecrosis, where loss of blood supply to the bone causes it to collapse. Or so claim a spate of studies including a latest one in the Journal of Rheumatology. Bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (BRONJ), for example, is a relatively
If you are in the business of selling perfect pearly smiles, what better way to advertise than to have one of your own? Maybe that explains the results of a recent independent survey conducted on behalf of the American Association of Orthodontists that found that nearly 75 percent of orthodontists have had orthodontic treatment themselves. The survey also found that 95 percent of orthodontists believe they enhance patients’ self-esteem through
A patient complains about a pain like a jolt of lightning that courses through her face whenever she brushes her teeth. Before you reach for your forceps and elevators, consider this. It may not be a dental problem at all.This pain could be a symptom of trigeminal neuralgia, which is a nervous disorder commonly caused by an enlarged artery or a vein pressing on the trigeminal nerve at the base
Never mind the Golden Globes and Oscars, we at DrB are more excited about the winners of American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry’s (AACD) 2008’s Best Celebrity Smiles contest. And what a line-up they are. Eva Mendes took the top prize in the women’s category with 38 percent of the votes followed by Anne Hathaway who had 12 percent. Kate Hudson came in third. Brad Pitt’s famous grin was awarded first
Laser periodontal therapy is an effective alternative to scalpel/suture surgery for treating gum disease, according to a new study in the International Journal of Periodontics & Restorative Dentistry. Led by Raymond Yukna, D.M.D., M.S., the histological split mouth design study looked at 12 single-rooted teeth with moderate to advanced chronic periodontitis. Six teeth underwent laser-assisted new attachment procedure (LANAP) using the PerioLase MVP-7 laser by Millennium Dental Technologies, while the
Is amalgam safe or not? While the debate continues to rage in the United States, Norway has made its decision: the country has announced a ban on all use of mercury in manufacturing, import and export. The ban will cover amalgam fillings as well as mercury thermometers and other products. In a statement, Erik Solheim, Norway’s minister of the environment, says the ban was intended to protect the environment. “Mercury
Dental laboratories in the U.S. and Europe are increasingly outsourcing crown and bridge production to keep up with the high demand for CAD/CAM restorations, according to Millennium Research Group’s “Global Markets for Dental CAD/CAM Systems 2008” report. Laboratories do not want to invest in the necessary milling equipment, and prefer to buy scanners, which are far cheaper. The actual production is then outsourced to milling centers, which many labs consider
They’re cheaper. They’re easier. They’re government-approved. And manufacturers are promoting them heavily. But can mini-implants do everything standard ones can? Probably not. That’s the consensus of top implant experts interviewed by HuangshanDental.com. While the mini-implants (AKA “small-diameter”) work better for some purposes, standard implants still win out in lots of others. Reports about mini-implants — less than 3 mm in diameter — are burning up the dental forums. “They do
What if you knew exactly which patients were most likely to get caries? You could focus extra efforts on protecting those patients’ teeth. Now researchers from Okayama University, Japan say they’ve got a whizz-bang bioactivity test that can help you do just that. In the January issue of the Journal of the American Dental Association, the investigators report that they found Cariostat by Dentsply-Sankin statistically accurate in predicting caries in
