PhotOral has licensed patented technology from the Forsyth Institute to develop a novel intraoral device that uses blue light to target and destroy potentially harmful dental biofilm microorganisms. The start-up company’s goal is to have the first light-based intraoral cleaning device available by late 2012, according to PhotOral Founder and CEO Stamatis Astra. In 2005, Nikos Soukos, DDS, PhD, and Max Goodson, DDS, PhD, of the Forsyth Institute, demonstrated the

Cenoire, a manufacturer of stylish portable electronic accessories, has introduced a line of electronic toothbrushes for women. The Eluo electronic toothbrush. Image courtesy of Cenoire. The Eluo electronic toothbrush. Image courtesy of Cenoire. Designed for those “on the go,” the Eluo toothbrush combines fashion with oral hygiene in a compact sonic toothbrush, according to the company. Battery-operated and using the latest electric toothbrush technology, the compact Eluo toothbrush is capable

Many impression materials have antimicrobial properties, but dental practitioners may be relying on them to prevent cross-contamination more than they should, according to a study in Quintessence International (November/December 2011, Vol. 42:10, pp. e124-e130). Researchers from Tel Aviv University compared four different antimicrobial impression materials and found that none offers a complete, long-lasting antibacterial or antifungal property. Dental impression materials may carry various microbial pathogens such as bacteria, viruses, and

Julie Wells Kroeker, RDH, of McAllen, TX, is the latest recipient of the Crest Oral-B Pros in the Profession award program. Wells Kroeker has been practicing dental hygiene for more than 28 years and holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of Oklahoma Health Science Center. She works in an area that has a large Hispanic population, bringing a potential language barrier between her and many of her patients.

A Pennsylvania man has established a scholarship fund to help dental hygiene students pay for dental instruments. The scholarship is in memory of his wife Susan Abby Belli, RDH, who was killed in a bicycle accident in July. Carl Belli of Greensburg, PA, set upthe Susan A. “Abby” Belli Endowment Scholarship at Westmoreland County Community College (WCCC), his wife’s alma mater. Susan, a mother of two children, decided to go