Cigna offers fixed co-pays for implants, TMD

Cigna is now offering insurance plans with fixed co-pays for surgical implants and temporomandibular disorder (TMD) treatment and therapy. The company’s new dental HMO options feature coverage for 26 additional procedures, including cone-beam CT, sinus augmentation, and bone grafting, the company noted in a press release. The new plans also offer employers the option of coverage for same-day, in-office dental restorations using digital impression and CAD/CAM processes. Cigna’s preventive care

Photobiomodulation treatment stabilizes implants

Biolux Research has completed a new clinical study using a shorter, more efficient, photobiomodulation treatment protocol to increase implant stability after surgery. The clinical study was completed at the University of Toronto as a student’s Master of Science thesis in the graduate department of dentistry. The study investigated the efficacy of a new treatment protocol for the OsseoPulse, Biolux’s approved photobiomodulation product, on implant stability. The new treatment protocol consists

Study shows wide variation in HNC care in U.K.

Only 3 in every 100 head and neck cancer (HNC) patients in the U.K. receive the ideal standard of care, according to the National Head and Neck Cancer Audit, which found wide variations in care. Just 3.1% of patients received care deemed important by experts, according to a story by Cancer Research UK. But the study also showed an improvement in survival rates among HNC patients over the last two

FDA changes opinion on blade implants

Endosseous dental implants, also known as blade-form implants, could get a boost in interest from the dental community as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) moves forward with efforts to reclassify the implants as lower risk. The FDA Medical Devices Advisory Committee’s Dental Products Panel met on July 18 to consider reclassifying the implants from class III to class II, first proposed in January. Class II medical devices are

OSAP offers Web-based tool kits on emerging diseases

The Organization for Safety, Asepsis and Prevention (OSAP) is offering free Web-based tool kits designed to prevent the spread of infectious diseases. The tool kits offer materials on avian influenza A (H7N9), novel coronavirus (MERS-CoV), and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The user-friendly tool kits draw on OSAP’s resources across the scientific, governmental, and practitioner communities to provide best practices for the safe and infection-free delivery of oral healthcare, according to

Vita expands Vita VM LC color palette

The Vita VM LC Classical line has been expanded to 15 colors. The new shades include B4, C1, C4, D2, and D4, completing the Classical shade line, according to the company. The Vita VM LC line is available in both 3D-Master and Classical shades. A new effect enamel material (EE2) also has been added to the line and can be used as an alternative to ENL. For less translucent results,

IU student seeks dental supply donations for needy

A student at Indiana University (IU) Northwest in Gary is launching a drive to provide dental supplies and education to local underprivileged communities. Chris Sicinski, a senior chemistry and predental student, suffered a painful tooth infection last year that required emergency oral surgery, according to a press release. The experience served as a catalyst to launch a collection drive for dental supplies that he plans to distribute along with oral

Study links HPV to a third of oropharyngeal cancers

More than a third of patients with oropharyngeal cancers also carried antibodies to one of the key cancer-causing proteins of the human papillomavirus (HPV), according to a new study in the Journal of Clinical Oncology (July 20, 2013, Vol. 31:21, pp. 2708-2715). Cancer Research UK scientists at the University of Oxford compared blood samples from 938 patients with head and neck, esophageal, and oropharyngeal cancers with 1,599 people without the

Kerr unveils new cordless LED curing light

Kerr has launched its new cordless, battery-free Demi Ultra LED Ultracapacitor curing light. The curing light is powered by the U-40 Ultracapacitor that enables a full charge in less than 40 seconds. The new LED light system also features Kerr’s proprietary C.U.R.E. technology, which delivers uniform depth of cure at low temperatures, and is easy to clean. The Demi Ultra LED Ultracapacitor curing light is now ready for distribution and

Medi-Cal site connects patients to dentists but needs updating

A small survey by the Children’s Partnership (TCP) has found that nearly 10% of the dentists listed as Medi-Cal providers on California’s online resource InsureKidsNow.gov do not accept Medi-Cal or cannot take new Medi-Cal patients, despite the website stating they did. Medi-Cal is the state’s Medicaid program. TCP’s goal was to “assess the accuracy and reliability” of the website’s information, find out if the Medi-Cal dentists actually take or can

Phocal fluoride disks to enter U.S. market

National Distribution & Contracting (NDC), a network of independent medical and dental distributors, has formed a distribution agreement with Colldent to distribute Phocal fluoride disks in the U.S. NDC represents 56 independent dealers focused on the dental market. Collectively, these dealers have an estimated 11% of the North American dental retail market, the company stated in a press release. Phocal’s thin, round disks are designed to fit between the teeth

Senate report wants dental chains booted from Medicaid

The Small Smiles dental chain should be excluded from the Medicaid program for encouraging dentists to perform unnecessary treatments to boost profits, according to a comprehensive report compiled by a U.S. Senate committee. The 1,500-page report also recommends that corporate-owned chains that use similar deceptive business models should be ousted from the federal program as well. “Fortunes should not be made on Wall Street by sacrificing proper care for the