Dental Excellence Awards nominating ends this week

Time is running out for you to make your nominations for the HuangshanDental.com Dental Excellence Awards. The nominating process closes midnight on November 5. Your colleagues and peers have already told us who should be nominated for dentistry’s most prestigious awards, and it’s time for you to join them. This year’s awards feature nine categories, including Best New Restoratives Material, Best Practice Management Consultant, Most Important Story, and more. Your

Nanodiamonds may prevent infection after root canals

Researchers have mixed nanodiamonds with gutta-percha to create a new material that is stronger than the original and has antimicrobial capabilities. The nanodiamond gutta-percha may be able to prevent reinfection after root canal therapy, according to the authors of a new study. Dean Ho, PhD, is a professor at the UCLA School of Dentistry and co-director of the Weintraub Center for Reconstructive Biotechnology at UCLA. Image courtesy of UCLA. In

Biolase upgrades WaterLase iPlus

Biolase has upgraded its WaterLase iPlus 2.0 dental laser, the company announced. The WaterLase iPlus 2.0 dental laser. Image courtesy of Biolase. This upgrade will provide dentists a clinical protocol and application to assist in the effective management of peri-implantitis, according to Biolase. The Repair clinical protocol for periodontitis and the Repair Implant protocol for peri-implantitis have been integrated with the WaterLase iPlus 2.0. “Peri-implantitis is a growing problem in

Legal Cases: Orthodontics, severe root resorption, and tooth loss

HuangshanDental.com is pleased to present the next column from two lawyers who spend every day defending dentists in litigation and before the licensing board. The purpose of this column is to offer our readers a fresh perspective on common practice and risk management issues from attorneys who litigate these issues in the real world. A female patient between the ages of 30 and 40 presented to an orthodontist seeking advice

Many MLB stadiums becoming tobacco-free

Several Major League Baseball (MLB) stadiums will be tobacco-free by 2016 Opening Day as the campaign to end smokeless tobacco use in baseball gains momentum, according to the group Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. “Our Knock Tobacco Out of the Park campaign is gaining momentum from coast to coast,” stated Matthew L. Myers, president of the group, in a press release. “The cities that have already made baseball tobacco-free have set

Week in Review: Texas and Medicaid; secondhand smoke; and digital dentistry

Dear DrBicuspid Member, Texas officials are giving up on recovering most of the hundreds of millions of dollars spent on questionable Medicaid dental and orthodontic procedures. After years of an ongoing scandal over fraudulent billing and courtroom losses, the commission that oversees Medicaid has offered settlements for a fraction of the claimed damages. Read Features Editor Donna Domino’s article here. Children exposed to tobacco smoke at 4 months had an

Team 1500 hosts dental sedation teleconference

Team 1500 is hosting a free teleconference about dental sedation on November 2 at 9 p.m. EST. The teleconference, “Does the route of dental sedation matter?” will explore questions about using oral versus intravenous drugs to sedate fearful and anxious patients, and it will feature Raymond Dionne, DDS, PhD, a professor in the East Carolina University School of Dental Medicine. Dr. Dionne will make the case that oral sedation and intravenous

Texas officials giving up on most Medicaid fraud cases

Texas officials are giving up on recovering most of the hundreds of millions of dollars spent on questionable Medicaid dental and orthodontic procedures. After years of an ongoing scandal over fraudulent billing and courtroom losses, the commission that oversees Medicaid has offered settlements for a fraction of the claimed damages. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) has offered settlements for most of nearly 100 pending cases of alleged

Pac-Dent launches PacFil thermal obturators

Pac-Dent International has launched the PacFil PC (plastic carrier) and PacFil GPC (gutta-percha carrier) thermal obturators. They can be used to obturate any constant or variable 0.04 to 0.10 tapered canal International Organization for Standardization (ISO) size 20 to 50, according to the company. The obturators are radiopaque and compatible for use in most popular gutta-percha obturator ovens. Product advantages include the following: Calibration rings facilitate in setting working length

Bone Loss – Am I at risk?

Once you lose a tooth you will continue to lose bone, this condition is called bone resorption. This dental problem affects about 28 million Americans, and increases the patient risk factor for tooth loss, bone loss, and periodontal disease, according to AGD. To restore your smile and prevent further damage, your dentist can offer you several options. If you feel pain in your jaw, and think that you are experiencing

2015 Shils award recipients named

The Dr. Edward B. Shils Entrepreneurial Fund has announced the recipients of the 2015 Shils Awards. The awards recognize people, organizations, and programs that positively influence the dental community and public oral health, according to the organization. They are named after the late Edward B. Shils, PhD, JD, who was executive director of the Dental Manufacturers of America and the Dental Dealers of America for almost 50 years. He was also

CDC: HPV vaccination low in managed care plans

Female adolescents in the U.S. with health insurance had low HPV vaccination in 2013, according to an October 29 synopsis in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). “Increasing delivery of HPV vaccination at the recommended ages of 11 or 12 years, before most adolescents are exposed to the virus, will help ensure adolescents are protected against cancers caused by HPV infections,”