From 8 to 12 June 2021, the lecture series “Excellence in Dentistry 4.0” by Tokuyama Dental will offer numerous free training webinars with top international speakers and a big closing event — via live stream from Venice, Italy.
The future of dental education will take place online, and this has not escaped Tokuyama Dental either. The Japan-based manufacturer of restorative materials and other specialty dental products is celebrating the launch of its Tokuyama Dental Academy in June with a first series of webinars that provide dentists with quality content, including solutions to issues that arise in everyday practice.
Prof Simone Grandini, professor of endodontics, restorative and paediatric dentistry at the University of Siena in Italy, will host the series of webinars.
He said: “Event attendees can expect to get plenty of tips and tricks from the varied programme while learning the latest best practice techniques in restorative dentistry.”
Mr Markus Leson, head of Sales at Tokuyama Dental Germany, explained that the webinar series will be divided into two parts: “From Tuesday to Friday, there will be two new presentations, one at noon (CET) and one in the evening. The whole thing then culminates in a large one final on Saturday in Venice, Italy. Due to the pandemic, the webinars during the week will only take place online, but we wanted to offer something special for Saturday. In compliance with all hygiene regulations, a small group of speakers will meet live on Saturday to talk to an expert to lead a panel discussion.”
Tokuyama Dental is a multinational dental manufacturer with a long list of regional offices. Mr Leson said Venice was chosen as the location for the online event to highlight the unique qualities of the company’s dental composites.
“But Venice is only half the story,” he said. “The event takes place on the island of Murano, which lies in the Venetian lagoon. The island is famous for its long tradition of glass-blowing and its fine craftsmanship that goes well with the unique spherical fillers making up our composites, which make them so distinctive. The manufacture of spherical fillers using the sol-gel process is celebrating its 40th anniversary.”
A dental event not to be missed
Attendees will have the opportunity to earn continuing education credits, and the experts who will be hosting webinars at the event include: Dr Thomas Taha from the UK who will speak about a personalised colour workflow; Drs Allegra Comba and Alberto Libero from Italy, who will present direct and semi-indirect techniques to improve patient smiles; and Dr Paul Gerloczy from Hungary who will discuss the cementation and behaviour of materials during cementation with a clinical approach to the different steps.
Prof Grandini added that other highlights of the webinar series include a presentation by Drs Engin Taviloglu and Bora Korkut from Turkey, where they talk about topics that are often complicated for the general practitioner, such as cervical restorations.
Dr Anne-Katrin Lührs from Germany and Dr Kaja Wichrowska-Rymarek from Poland will discuss tips and tricks for dealing with subgingival restorations and how to easily approach daily restorations.
Finally, Dr Guilio Pavolucci and Prof Grandini himself will discuss a workflow to simplify aesthetic restorations in the anterior region.
The experts who will take part in the live panel discussion on Saturday do not need to be introduced, according to Grandini. They include the dental adhesion experts Prof Bart Van Meerbeek from KU Leuven in Belgium and Prof Junji Tagami from Tokyo Medical and Dental University.
Dr Jean-Pierre Salomon from France will share his expertise on the optical properties of materials with the panel, and Dr Newton Fahl from Brazil and Dr Fernando Autrán from Spain will give tips on how to achieve a high level of aesthetics.
“Dr Noboru Takahashi from Japan and Dr Vincenzo Musella from Italy will propose minimally invasive treatments for the realisation of aesthetic veneers,” said Prof Grandini. “Finally, my friend and mentor Prof Angelo Putignano will talk about our experiences and the approach of ‘Style Italiano’. There will also be room for some surprises. To sum up, this is a dental event not to be missed.”
Striving for the latest challenges in restorative dentistry
Mr Leson stated that Tokuyama Dental founded the academy of the same name to help clients with the issues they encounter in their daily practice.
The company has confirmed it will not be attending the International Dental Show (IDS) this year out of concern for the safety of employees and customers. Mr Leson added that the absence of IDS on the company’s calendar heightened the need to look for alternative ways of retaining customers.
As a kick-off event for the academy’s launch, Prof Grandini said it was critical that the “Excellence in Dentistry 4.0” showcase a diverse programme that encompasses topics from both research and clinical practice as the needs and challenges of those present who practice restorative dentistry are different.
In fact, one of the biggest challenges these days is just staying up to date, Prof Grandini said.
He explained: “New materials and techniques are constantly emerging, especially in the field of restorative dentistry, so it is imperative for dentists to choose the material that best suits their needs and follow a repeatable protocol that suits their skills.”
Prof Grandini added that another major challenge is the ability of dentists to follow the shift in perspective that has recently taken place. While the choice of materials and techniques are paramount, it should be done with a multidisciplinary approach to clinical cases to achieve full rehabilitation.
For the participants of the first webinar series of the Tokuyama Academy, “Excellence in Dentistry 4.0” in June, there are some surprises and training points.
For more information about the online event and registration, interested participants may head to the Tokuyama Dental Academy website.
