THE CANARY SYSTEM HAS SUPERIOR EFFICACY IN DETECTING PROXIMAL CARIES COMPARED TO CONVENTIONAL METHODS

Led by Professor B.T. Amaechi, researchers from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio recently presented their findings that The Canary System® has superior diagnostic efficacy in detecting proximal caries compared to conventional methods including bitewing radiographs.
The findings were presented July 2-5, 2014, in Greifswald, Germany, at the 61st ORCA Congress (European Organization for Caries Research), and were published this month in Caries Research. The researchers concluded that The Canary System had greater sensitivity (0.933) compared to visual detection (0.733) using the International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS) II and bitewing radiography (0.267). When examining early lesions specifically, the highest negative and predictive values among all methods were for The Canary System at 89.2% and 88.9%, respectively. They concluded that The Canary System can be a valuable method for proximal caries lesions diagnosis.
This independent study along with the over 60 peer-reviewed publications, 14 case reports and 2 Health Canada approved clinical trials validates The Canary System as an accurate, repeatable, and safe device for the detection and monitoring of caries on all tooth surfaces, around the margins of restorations and beneath the intact surfaces of opaque sealants. The Canary System’s crystal structure diagnostics has become an essential diagnostic tool in dental practices in the US and Canada.
Please visit www.thecanarysystem.com or email sales@thecanarysystem.com to request additional information.

Dental fear affects adolescent perception of interaction with dental staff

Jaakkola S, Lahti S, Räihä H, Saarinen M, Tolvanen M, Aromaa M, Sillanpää M, Suominen S, Mattila M-L, Rautava P. Dental fear affects adolescent perception of interaction with dental staff. Eur J Oral Sci 2014; 00: 000–000. © 2014 Eur J Oral Sci
 
The main purpose of this study was to explore whether subjective perception of interaction with dental staff is associated with dental fear in a population-based sample of 18-yr-old adolescents (n = 773). The interaction was measured using the Patient Dental Staff Interaction Questionnaire (PDSIQ), validated with exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, which yielded the factors of ‘kind atmosphere and mutual communication’, ‘roughness’, ‘insecurity’, ‘trust and safety’, and ‘shame and guilt’. Dental fear was measured using the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS). Gender and sense of coherence (SOC) were included as potential confounding variables. Adolescents with high dental fear more often perceived their interaction with dental staff negatively and more often felt insecure than others. This difference persisted after adjustment for gender and SOC. In conclusion, adolescents with high dental fear may perceive their interaction with dental staff more positively if the staff succeed in creating a positive, trusting, approving, and supportive atmosphere with kindness, calmness, and patience. The communication and interaction skills of dental staff may play a particularly important role when encountering highly fearful dental patients.

Fresh extraction socket: spontaneous healing vs. immediate implant placement

Discepoli N, Vignoletti F, Laino L, de Sanctis M, Muñoz F, Sanz M. Fresh extraction socket: spontaneous healing vs. immediate implant placement. Clin. Oral Impl. Res. 00, 2014, 1–6 doi: 10.1111/clr.12447

 

Abstract

Aim

To evaluate the impact that immediate implant placement may have on bone remodelling in comparison with adjacent sockets left to heal spontaneously.

Materials and methods

In a beagle dog model (N = 16 dogs), mandibular premolars were extracted, and implants were placed in each distal socket (test) with the corresponding mesial site left to heal undisturbed (control). Healing was assessed measuring both the vertical distance between buccal and lingual crest (B'L') and the width of buccal and lingual walls at different levels. Five healing periods were evaluated. Differences between means for each variable and for each healing period between test and control were compared (Kruskal–Wallis test; Friedman test).

Results

At 2 and 8 weeks of healing, the B'L' distance revealed significant higher values at test compared to control sites, being this difference three times higher at the end of the study (P < 0.05). In the test group, the width of the crest was reduced between baseline (0.37 [0.04]) and 8 weeks healing (0.13 [0.64]), demonstrating a 62% reduction of the initial width. These differences were not observed in the control group.

Conclusions

Immediate implant placement into fresh extraction sockets may jeopardize the vertical bone remodelling of the socket. Furthermore, a tendency towards greater buccal horizontal resorption was observed in the most coronal aspect of the buccal bone crest.

Gingival bleeding on probing: relationship to change in periodontal pocket depth and effect of sodium hypochlorite oral rinse

Gonzalez S., Cohen C. L., Galván M., Alonaizan F. A., Rich S. K., Slots J. Gingival bleeding on probing: relationship to change in periodontal pocket depth and effect of sodium hypochlorite oral rinse. J Periodont Res 2014; doi: 10.1111/jre.12219. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd

Background and Objective

This study evaluated the potential of gingival bleeding on probing to serve as a predictor of future periodontal breakdown. It also assessed the ability of 0.25% sodium hypochlorite twice-a-week oral rinse to convert periodontal pockets showing bleeding on probing to nonbleeding sites.

Material and Methods

The study was performed as a randomized, single-blinded, clinical trial in parallel groups. Seven periodontitis patients rinsed twice-weekly for 3 mo with 15 mL of a fresh solution of 0.25% sodium hypochlorite, and five periodontitis patients rinsed with water. The 12 study patients received no subgingival or supragingival scaling. Clorox^® Regular-Bleach was the source of sodium hypochlorite. At baseline and 3-mo visits, gingival bleeding was assessed within 30 s after probing to full pocket depth using an approximate force of 0.75 N.

Results

A total of 470 (38%) of 1230 periodontal pockets in the bleach-rinse group revealed bleeding on probing at the initial visit but not at the 3-mo visit; only 71 (9%) of 828 pockets in the control group became bleeding-negative during the study (p < 0.001). Bleeding on probing in 4- to 7-mm-deep pockets decreased by 53% in the bleach-rinse group but increased by 6% in the water-rinse group (p < 0.001). Ninety-seven pockets showed depth increases of ≥ 2 mm after 3 mo: 60 (62%) of those pockets exhibited bleeding on probing at both the initial and the 3-mo visits; 24 (25%) bled at only one of the two visits; and 13 (13%) never demonstrated gingival bleeding (p < 0.001).

Conclusions

Persistent gingival bleeding on probing was associated with an increased risk for periodontal breakdown, and the absence of gingival bleeding seemed to be a useful, although not perfect, indicator of disease stability. Twice-weekly oral rinsing with dilute bleach (0.25% sodium hypochlorite) produced a significant reduction in bleeding on probing, even in deep unscaled pockets. Sodium hypochlorite constitutes a valuable antiseptic in periodontal self-care.

Cost estimation of single-implant treatment in the periodontally healthy patient after 16–22 years of follow-up

Dierens M, Vandeweghe S, Kisch J, Nilner K, Cosyn J, De Bruyn H. Cost estimation of single-implant treatment in the periodontally healthy patient after 16–22 years of follow-up. Clin. Oral Impl. Res. 00, 2014; 1–9.

Abstract

Background

Costs for single-implant treatment are mostly described for the initial treatment. Information on the additional cost related to aftercare is scarce.

Objective

To make an estimation of complication costs of single implants in periodontally healthy patients after 16–22 years and to compare costs for various prosthetic designs.

Materials and methods

Patients with a single implant were recalled for a clinical examination and file investigation. Prosthetic designs included single-tooth (ST) and CeraOne (CO) abutments supporting a porcelain-fused-to-metal (PFM), all-ceramic (CER), or gold-acrylic (ACR) crown. Costs related to failures or technical, biologic, and aesthetic complications were retrieved from patient's records. Total and yearly additional complication costs were calculated as a percentage relative to the initial cost. Chair time needed to solve the complication was recorded and prosthetic designs were compared by Kruskal–Wallis tests.

Results

Fifty patients with 59 surviving implants were clinically investigated. Additional complication costs after a mean follow-up of 18.5 years amounted to 23% (range 0–110%) of the initial treatment cost. In total, 39% of implants presented with no costs, whereas 22% and 8% encountered additional costs over 50% and 75%, respectively. In 2%, the complication costs exceeded the initial cost. The mean yearly additional cost was 1.2% (range 0–6%) and mean complication time per implant was 67 min (range 0–345 min). Differences between prosthetic designs (CO, ST-PFM, ST-ACR) were statistically significant for total cost (P = 0.011), yearly cost (P = 0.023), and time (P = 0.023). Pairwise comparison revealed significant lower costs for CO compared with ST-ACR reconstructions.

Conclusion

Patients should be informed about additional costs related to complications with single implants. The mean additional cost spent on complications was almost one-quarter of the initial treatment price. A majority of implants presented with lower additional costs, whereas the highest complication costs were related to a smaller group with 22% of the implants needing more than half of the initial cost for complication management. Expenses were significantly different for various prosthetic designs.

Accelerated, continuous, 17-month, Associate in Applied Science (AAS) degree in dental hygiene.

NYU College of Dentistry Launches 17-Month Fast-Track AAS Degree in Dental Hygiene--First of its Kind in NYS
Fast-Track Students to Learn in Integrated, State-of-the Art Clinical Settings Alongside NYU Dental Students and Faculty
New York University College of Dentistry (NYUCD) is pleased to announce that, effective January 2015, it will offer an accelerated, continuous, 17-month, Associate in Applied Science (AAS) degree in dental hygiene.

The Fast-Track AAS degree program, the first of its kind in New York State, is designed specifically to enable highly-motivated students to gain access to the same innovative, high quality education as that offered by the traditional two-to-three year course of study, but in a more concentrated period.
US News and World Report ranks dental hygiene in the top 10 on their list of Best Jobs of 2014. Dental hygienists make yearly starting salaries of more than $70,000, and the prediction is for 33.3 percent employment growth in this field within the next decade.

“The new Fast-Track program addresses the readiness of high school graduates -- and those who already hold college degrees but desire to change careers -- to enter one of the most personally fulfilling and professionally rewarding health professions within the shortest possible time,” said Dr. Cheryl Westphal Theile, assistant dean for allied health programs at NYUCD. “As key members of the healthcare team, dental hygienists work together with dentists to meet the oral health needs of patients and thereby improve patients’ quality of life.”

NYU offers the only dental hygiene programs housed within a dental college in New York State. This gives Fast-Track students the opportunity to learn in integrated clinical settings alongside NYU dental students, as well as with NYU faculty members from dental hygiene, dentistry, and dental specialty areas (orthodontics, periodontics, prosthodontics, implant dentistry, pediatric dentistry, and oral surgery) in state-of-the-art facilities that attract the largest, most diverse patient population in the nation. Community-based rotations further enable students to gain valuable clinical experience while helping to educate patients about the importance of oral health and promoting a lifetime of good health habits.

Graduates of the program are qualified to take the clinical board examinations and the dental hygiene national boards, which are requirements for state licensure. The NYU Fast-Track dental hygiene program is fully accredited by the American Dental Association Commission on Dental Accreditation for Dental Hygiene Education Programs.

Professional opportunities following graduation include clinical practice, public health careers, research, and health-care management. Financial aid is available.

The Fast-Track AAS Program is currently accepting applications for January 2015. The deadline for submission of applications is November 1, 2014. For more information and to apply, please go to http://dental.nyu.edu/academicprograms/dental-hygiene-programs.html and click on “Application Process.”
About New York University College of Dentistry--New York University College of Dentistry (NYUCD) is the third oldest and the largest dental school in the US, educating more than 8 percent of all dentists. NYUCD has a significant global reach and provides a level of national and international diversity among its students that is unmatched by any other dental school. http://www.nyu.edu/dental/

###

Tellcast.tv wins Pride Institute Best of Class Award

July 20^th, 2014 - Fort Collins, Colorado - TellCast.tv has received the Pride Institute’s “Best of Class” Technology Award - now in its sixth year. “This honor is not taken lightly by us at TellCast.tv”, said Jason Laurie, Chief Operations Officer.  “Our goal is to provide the dental community with the highest quality TV programming for their practices.”

The “Best of Class” founder, Lou Shuman, DMD, CAGS, stated that “The foundation for our success is, and has always been, our formula: technology leadership in dentistry, unbiased, and not for profit. The commitment of the distinguished panel and our partners at the American Dental Association help us maintain the integrity that creates true value.”

Laurie goes on to explain, “With Tellcast.tv, you have the power of your own personal internet television station at your fingertips!”

Tellcast.tv blends entertainment, internal and external marketing, and patient education into a broadcast that runs on a Google TV or Smart TV. Tellcast.tv lets dental practices outfit reception rooms and operatories with professional industry content  that is constantly updated with short videos, news, weather, traffic alerts, social media and interactive trivia. Unlike traditional television, users can interact with the broadcast through Tellcast.tv’s mobile app, which allows them to customize video playlists, share videos over social networks, and play interactive trivia games to win prizes.”

“It's possible to have TellCast.TV in a dental practice for free,” said Laurie, “and for a small monthly fee, each practice can add on screen marketing and education.” 

For more information on TellCast.TV, log on towww.tellcast.tv, send an email to info@Tellcast.TV or call (888) 519-1142.

                                                                         ###

--