Glass ceramic outperforms indirect resin in new veneer study

Veneers made with glass ceramic may be more durable than those composed of indirect resin. These findings come from a new study that evaluated the long-term survival rate of restorations placed on maxillary anterior teeth. Laminate veneers are a minimally invasive way to improve a patient’s smile. However, while these restorations are easy to cement and repair, they are also prone to failure. “The ceramic veneers on maxillary anterior teeth

Week in Review: Intraoral scanners rated | Perio link to diabetes | Medical reimbursement

Dear DrBicuspid Member, Welcome to the Saturday edition of our Week in Review e-newsletter. As more of our readers are expanding their practice hours to include weekends, we thought we should do the same. Let us know what you think. When you are using an oral scanner to scan for single crowns and short-span restorations, does it matter which oral scanner you use? In a major new study, researchers compared

Align Technology, Straumann end distribution talks

Medical device company Align Technology and Straumann Group have terminated discussions regarding a possible development and distribution agreement. As a result, Straumann will pay Align Technology $16 million as part of a patent settlement agreement announced in March. The settlement ended the companies’ patent disputes in the U.S., the U.K., and Brazil, including those involving ClearCorrect, a subsidiary of Straumann. As part of the agreement, the two companies had signed a

WVU to study lung disease prevention in dentistry

The West Virginia University (WVU) School of Dentistry has announced it will be conducting a new study on how dental professionals come into contact with vapors, gases, and airborne dusts that may cause lung disease and also ways to prevent it. The aim of the study is to assess how dental professionals come into contact with potentially hazardous particulate matter and how to reduce this exposure. Five WVU teaching clinics

Dental crowns top men’s most researched cosmetic procedures

Dental crowns and invisible-aligner treatment were the most researched cosmetic procedures by U.S. men in the first three months of 2019, according to the results of a new survey from RealSelf. These procedures lead a list that included hair loss procedures, tummy tucks, liposuction, and more. In addition, microneedling and the use of a CO2 laser to treat sun damage or acne issues were the fastest-growing cosmetic nonsurgical procedures, with

Do orthodontics affect patients’ long-term outlook?

One reason patients cite for starting orthodontic treatment is the belief that the treatment will help them feel more positive about themselves later in life. A long-term follow-up of more than 440 30-year-olds calls that assumption into question. Researchers surveyed respondents with questions focusing on four areas of psychosocial development. Regardless of initial malocclusion severity, orthodontic treatment was not associated with better psychosocial outcomes, they reported in Orthodontics & Craniofacial

New product: Align Technology launches intraoral scanner

Medical device company Align Technology has launched a new intraoral scanner. The iTero Element Foundation scanner is a restorative scanner designed for practices just starting in digital dentistry. The scanner includes the company’s restorative workflow and iRecord software applications. Software pathway upgrades are available for practices who wish to include Invisalign clear aligners in their offerings, according to Align Technology.

Calif. dentist charged with 75 counts of billing fraud

A California dentist has been charged with insurance fraud for submitting reimbursement claims to private insurance companies for dental work that allegedly was never performed. The dentist submitted claims for nearly $600,000 covering 623 root canals in 75 patients, according to state authorities. April Rose Ambrosio, DDS, of Mira Mesa was charged with 75 counts of making false claims for dental services in a complaint filed June 10 in San

Can computer-guided navigation teach implant placement?

When it comes to implant placement, developments in computer‐guided dynamic navigation systems may offer dental students a new training approach. Researchers put one of these systems to the test to see if it could improve implant surgical training. They enlisted 14 dental students in a pilot study using a 3D-printed model. The students quickly improved from the first attempt onward, the study authors reported in the European Journal of Dental

Periodontal disease linked to prediabetes, puberty

Periodontal health may be related to everything from prediabetes to puberty. Researchers who evaluated some of these connections presented their findings at the American Diabetes Association’s Scientific Sessions in San Francisco. Poster presentations on June 10 explored how fasting blood glucose levels in obese patients correlated with severe periodontitis experience and how puberty may be a better indicator of periodontal disease than age for some patients. These posters highlighted the

Study links glucose disorders and perio disease

Patients with undetected glucose disorders (dysglycemia) have a higher risk of both periodontitis and myocardial infarction, according to a study published June 10 in Diabetes Care. Researchers from the Karolinska Institute in Solna, Sweden, compared more than 710 patients with myocardial infarction to more than 730 control patients in their study. Patients with myocardial infarction were twice as likely as the patients in the control group to have an undetected

New studies focus on diabetes link with perio disease

New research on the relationship between periodontal disease and diabetes was presented on June 8 and 9 at the American Diabetes Association’s Scientific Sessions in San Francisco. The poster presentations included research on microbiota composition as a risk factor for periodontal disease in patients with diabetes, as well as study findings related to inflamed surface area. Microbiota While a connection between diabetes and long-term inflammation from periodontal disease has been