Just as there’s more than one way to skin a cat, there’s also more than one way to restore your teeth with dental inlays and onlays. These dental restoration techniques are used to fix teeth that have suffered from moderate to mild decay as well as fractures or cracks. However, the extent of the damage shouldn’t be so severe that you’ll need a new crown and whatnot. However, it should be
William Lenkaitis, DDS, the former team dentist and offensive lineman for the New England Patriots NFL team died on August 27. He was 70. After his retirement from football, Dr. Lenkaitis maintained a practice in Foxborough, MA, while also serving as the Patriots team dentist, a position he took during his active playing days, according to multiple reports. He played 14 seasons in the NFL, 11 of them with the Patriots.
Pediatric dentist Jesus Villegas, DDS, and his two dental clinics in Connecticut have agreed to pay nearly $1.4 million to settle false Medicaid claims, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut. The settlement resolves allegations that Dr. Villegas submitted false federal and state claims when taking pediatric x-rays in his two dental offices: Fairfield Pediatric Dentistry in Milford and Haven Pediatric Dentistry in West Haven. State and
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that it will require boxed warnings for prescription opioid analgesics, opioid-containing cough products, and benzodiazepines. Nearly 400 drug products will be required to carry the new warning labels, which will also include information on the serious risks associated with using these kinds of medications at the same time, according to the August 31 announcement. Possible side effects include extreme sleepiness, respiratory depression,
Align Technology and the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) will not appeal a 2015 federal court decision that determined the ITC does not have the authority to regulate data, according to a statement from ClearCorrect. While the decision reinforces that the ITC doesn’t have jurisdiction over data, legal disputes between the two aligner creators are not over yet. ClearCorrect noted that Align and the ITC did not file an appeal
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has awarded a total of $3 million to six states to improve collaborations between chronic disease and oral health programs. Alaska, Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, Minnesota, and New York will each receive $500,000 over the next two years to help their oral health departments develop programs to improve the oral health of their residents, according to a CDC announcement. The effort will
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has awarded $53 million in funding to help address the prescription opioid epidemic. The funds were distributed to 44 states, four tribes, and the District of Columbia to improve treatment access, reduce deaths, and strengthen prevention programs. Data collection and analysis will also be supported. The $53 million will support the following six programs: Medication-Assisted Treatment Prescription Drug Opioid Addiction Grants,
University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) faculty member Alton Lacy, DDS, PhD, died of an aortic aneurysm on August 25. He was 73. Dr. Lacy served on the faculty in preventive and restorative dental sciences from 1975 until 2009, according to UCSF. He practiced in the faculty group practice at UCSF, and after retirement, he continued part time in private practice in Berkeley, CA. According to UCSF, memorial service plans are
Do any schools in your community offer a fluoride mouthrinse for their students? Do you counsel your pediatric patients, and their parents, to use such a rinse? You probably should, according to a recent Cochrane Library review. The U.K.-based authors of the review sought to find out whether fluoride mouthrinse was effective and safe for preventing caries, compared with a placebo. The secondary goal was to update a 2002 Cochrane
Recommending root canal treatment to potentially prevent a heart attack may seem like a stretch now, but one day it could be reality. A recent research article has linked endodontic lesions to cardiovascular disease. John M. Liljestrand, DDS, is a doctoral candidate at the University of Helsinki. Researchers from Finland, the U.S., and Chile found that the more apical rarefactions a person has, the more likely they are to have
Procter & Gamble (P&G) has won a patent infringement lawsuit against a Chinese competitor. The lawsuit was filed on February 18, 2016, by P&G against Personal Care (Guangzhou) of China, a private-label manufacturer and distributor of teeth-whitening products, and importer MS International Enterprises. P&G claimed its patents for teeth-whitening strips were infringed upon by Onuge. A judge with the U.S. District Court for Southern Ohio in Cincinnati signed off on
Dear DrBicuspid Member, A New Jersey oral surgeon has been linked to 15 cases of bacterial endocarditis, a heart infection, including one patient who subsequently died. While an investigation by state health officials found “breaches of infection prevention practices” at the office where patients had received IV sedation, the doctor was not suspended or penalized by the state dental board. Read Features Editor Donna Domino’s article here. When it comes
