You only have until midnight on September 28 to submit your nominations for the 2018 DrBicuspid Dental Excellence Awards. Your nominations will be used to assemble a list of candidates to be voted on by you, our readers. The winners will be announced in December 2018 and the awards presented at the Chicago Dental Society’s Midwinter Meeting in February 2019. There are 11 categories in all: Best New CAD/CAM Product
All-ceramic CAD/CAM crowns are a treatment option for full-coverage restorations for endodontically treated teeth, but how do they resist fracturing? Researchers compared two kinds of crowns to see which held up best. Crowns with an amalgam core foundation generally resisted failure better than so-called endocrowns, they found. “Crowns supported by amalgam cores demonstrated more favorable modes of failure,” the researchers wrote (Journal of Esthetic and Restorative Dentistry, August 25, 2018).
How many times has this happened to you: Your hygienist tells you that your patient’s gums are bleeding and before you can even respond, the patient says something to the effect of “Just give me a prescription and be done with it.” Well, that may treat the immediate symptom of bleeding gums, but it hardly goes to the cause of the disease. Antibiotic Alvin Danenberg, DDS. A prescribed antibiotic may
Voco America has introduced its new Meron Plus QM glass ionomer cement. The Meron Plus QM is a paste-to-paste, resin-modified glass ionomer cement that comes in the company’s QuickMix syringe. The cement has an adjustable working time of up to two minutes, allowing for the cementation of restorations and bridges. The product also has high adhesive values to both dentin and high-strength ceramics, according to Voco.
Using intraoral scanners for digital impressions is an integral part of any CAD/CAM process. But what is the best strategy for scanning a patient’s mouth, and does it differ by type of scanner? Researchers wanted to find out. They scanned a model four different ways using four different scanners to determine the best technique. For three of the scanners tested, the researchers found that the scanning strategy did not affect
Dentsply Sirona has introduced a new dental diode laser, the SiroLaser Blue. The laser emits a blue light at a wavelength of 445 nm. As this blue light is well-absorbed by soft tissue, the laser is able to cut quickly and precisely, according to Dentsply Sirona. The laser can also be operated at an infrared 970-nm wavelength and a visible red diode wavelength of 660 nm. The SiroLaser Blue is
Dentsply Sirona has launched its new Azento digital workflow in the U.S. for implant purchase, service, and delivery. Azento allows dentists to submit digital scans to a case management portal and receive customized treatment plans for their patients. Once the custom treatment plan is approved, a box with the tools necessary for treatment, including surgical guides and healing abutments, will be delivered to the practice within five business days, according
In the past five years, I’ve watched a dramatic increase in the number of my patients who lay back, open wide, and expose a mouth filled with rotten teeth. One 21-year-old woman who came to my office had teeth and gums that were so broken, infected, and rotten from “meth mouth” that I was forced to pull all of her teeth and fit her for dentures. This was a pivotal
Dear DrBicuspid Member, Did you know that while the Affordable Care and Patient Protection Act requires health plans to spend a certain amount of premium dollars on medical care and quality improvement, this hasn’t been mandated for most dental plans? A new study looked at such so-called medical loss ratios for dental insurance and found that many consumers may not be receiving a good value. Read more here. Dr. Jacob Elefant
Women face unique oral health challenges throughout their lifetime, thanks in part to fluctuating hormones, according to a presentation by periodontist Jacqueline Plemons, DDS, at the recent California Dental Association’s CDA Presents 2018 meeting in San Francisco. Dr. Plemons detailed how hormone levels affect women’s periodontal health and explained what dentists can do to help the female half of their patients maintain healthy teeth and gums. She also shared tips for
The developer of propofol has won the 2018 Lasker Award for clinical medical research, one of the most prestigious awards in medicine. Veterinary anesthesiologist John B. Glen, BVMS, PhD, began developing propofol in the 1970s while working for ICI Pharmaceuticals, which was later acquired by AstraZeneca. Today, propofol is one of the most widely used drugs for intravenous anesthesia and is administered more than 60 million times per year in the
Orthodontic technology company Ormco has added a new bracket system to its Damon system. The Damon Q2 system features a new drop-in hook for improved bending strength and increased patient comfort. The system also has twice the rotation control for treatment reliability and predictability, according to Ormco.