Science has shown that irrigants are more effective when they are electro-mechanically activated. Acoustic streaming and cavitation has been shown to significantly enhance cleansing of difficult anatomy.

EndoUltra™ has quickly established itself as the best, most clinically effective option for the activation of endodontic irrigants. Recent software improvement and redesigned titanium tips further enhance performance within these three areas:

·       Durability – flexible titanium allows for confident repeat use over the life of the tip

·       Flexibility – Easily pre-bent for enhanced access and ability to navigate curved canals

·       Power – Added power for improved acoustic streaming and cavitation, resulting in cleaner canal systems.

For over 20 years Vista Dental Products has been offering hundreds of top quality dental products, endodontic solutions, equipment, and accessories in order to improve dental practices. These new titanium tips for ultrasonic activation are just another example of Vista’s dedication to better patient outcomes. To find out more information, visit vista-dental.com or call 877-418-4782.

Marshall W. Hanson, DDS, has been named an Accredited Fellow in the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry (AACD). The purpose of Fellowship is to provide the highest level of achievement for members in accordance with the AACD's mission of education and excellence.

Hanson graduated with Honors from the University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry in 2007 and currently works at Villa Dental in Hamilton, New Zealand. He has been a member of the AACD since 2004 and achieved Accredited Member status in 2013. Additionally, he has published clinical work in various peer-reviewed journals, nationally and internationally, with a focus on modern technologies and responsible esthetics.

"Dr. Hanson's commitment to responsible esthetics and cosmetic dentistry is undeniable with his most recent achievement as an AACD Accredited Fellow," said AACD Fellowship Chair Bradley J. Olson, DDS, FAACD. "Our Accredited Fellow members must complete one of the most rigorous, yet life-changing journeys of their career-and of their lives."

Hanson will be honored for this achievement at the 34th Annual AACD Scientific Session in Chicago on April 21, 2018.

Air Techniques, Inc. announced the appointment of Patrick Strohkirch as its new Director of Special Markets.

Strohkirch has over 25 years of experience in the dental industry, both on the manufacturer and dealer side. Most recently, he held the positions of Director of Special Markets and Regional Sales Director at Digital Doc in the U.S. and Canada. Prior to that, Strohkirch served as Territory Sales Manager, Digital Impressioning and CAD/CAM Dentistry at both Henry Schein Dental and Patterson Dental. Strohkirch holds an MBA from Alverno College, as well as a Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene from the University of Minnesota. He taught as a Clinical and Didactic Associate Professor at the University of Oklahoma School of Dentistry, and he served in the military for 12 years.

“Patrick is a very experienced sales leader with in-depth knowledge of Special Markets and clinical applications in our product categories.” says Christoph Roeer, Chief Executive Officer of Air Techniques. “We are very pleased to have him on our team, driving our future sales strategy in this increasingly important segment of the dental market.”

“Joining Air Techniques and strengthening the Special Markets Team is an exciting moment in my career,” Strohkirch says. “Together with my colleagues on the Special Markets Team, I am looking forward to further building the future business of Air Techniques in this fast growing and demanding segment of the industry.”

Strohkirch will be reporting until further notice directly to the CEO of Air Techniques.

For more information on Air Techniques, visit www.airtechniques.com.

Reinvent Dental Products, a start-up company new to the dental industry, announced the launch of its flagship product, the NiTin™ Sectional Matrix System.

Used primarily for Class II posterior composite restorations, the NiTin™ system differentiates itself from the competition by its ring construction. Created from drawn-wire Nitinol, a product used in medical device applications including orthodontics, the material undergoes a process of molecular alignment which produces unparalleled spring qualities, ensuring “like new” separating forces even after hundreds of uses. Resiliency is reinforced with PEEK® (polyether ether ketone), a super-plastic renowned for its durability, which is used exclusively in the construction of the backer and tips. Unlike non-drawn-wire nickel titanium, when compared to other rings on the market, the NiTin™ sectional matrix ring has been shown to provide superior resiliency and significantly longer life.

“This new system represents a major advancement in sectional matrix technology.  With a unique combination of materials, reflected in the only ring on the market manufactured with PEEK® and Nitinol, we hope clinicians are as pleased as we are with NiTin’s performance and enhanced capabilities versus other products on the market,” said Jason Phillips, Director of Marketing. “Further, the simultaneous roll-out of Reinvent Dental Products and the NiTin™ Sectional Matrix System represents a big leap forward for product innovation in the industry.”

In addition to NiTin’s advanced matrix ring construction, the kit also comes with matrix bands developed with a significantly pronounced curvature, which makes replication of tooth shapes easier and more predictable. Included in the kit are color-coded, anatomically correct wedges to aid in separation and sealing of the band interproximally. The system comes with ergonomically designed ring placement forceps as well as band placement and removal forceps.

The NiTin™ Sectional Matrix System and refill components are available direct from Reinvent Dental Products.  Call 844-200-0721 or visit reinventdental.comfor more information.

Arklign, an end-to-end partner for dental service providers that says it "is transforming and connecting the dental lab experience," announced its presence at the California Dental Association’s 2017 CDA Presents convention in San Francisco, where its booth will highlight its capabilities as a full-service laboratory and comprehensive case management system. Arklign Case Relationship Management (aCRM), the company’s proprietary online platform, will be available for demonstration at the Arklign booth, giving CDA attendees an interactive look at how Arklign has optimized the dental laboratory workflow for its customers by simplifying submissions, centralizing communication with the laboratory, and providing data with actionable insights.

“As a Bay Area-based company, we are excited to show CDA SF attendees how Arklign is integrating online technology and systemized automation with our lab operations to give dental care providers a more efficient and connected lab experience,” says Ray Alde, co-founder and CEO of Arklign. “With our aCRM platform, dental care providers and DSOs not only benefit from a streamlined workflow, they also have direct access to their case restoration data, empowering them with insights to make informed decisions that lead to savings in time and costs.”

With more than a decade of experience as a premier full-service laboratory with global operations, Arklign recognized inefficiencies in the interactions between the laboratory and its customers and set out to create a solution through a holistic approach that would resolve pain points on both sides of the relationship. In 2016, aCRM was launched and has since served more than 840 dental practices and DSOs who are benefitting from an all-digital case management system with simplified form submissions, saved preferences, online pick up scheduling, case tracking, real-time notifications, and more. 

To learn more, visit Arklign at CDA Presents in San Francisco from August 24-26 at booth No. 259 on the first floor of Moscone Center West.

Dental Wings Inc., a developer and supplier of CAD/CAM software and scanner technology, has become a fully-owned Straumann Group company after its shareholders signed an agreement selling the remaining 45% of their shares to Staumann Holding AG.

“Our long-term partnership with Straumann has been exceptional on every level, and we are both proud and pleased to become part of the Straumann Group. The energy and passion for digital dentistry has never been stronger at Straumann, so the future is very bright for Dental Wings,” said Dental Wings’ Founder, Naoum Araj.

Dental Wings products and services will continue to be sold under the same brands they are today, and distributed by Straumann and the international network of Dental Wings distribution partners. Dental Wings’ CEO, Michael Rynerson, will be transitioning to Straumann’s new Digital Business Unit, a team of more than 500 people devoted to all aspects of the business.

The Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Journal – In today’s connected world, surgeons and anesthesiologists have the ability to use widely available technology, such as GoPro cameras, Skype, WebEx, and Google Chat to remotely care for patients in distant countries. This readily available technology has the ability to make clinics more efficient and reliable. A recent study examines the possibilities these tools create, and how they can assist in the diagnosing of patients in remote areas.

In the current issue of The Cleft Palate–Craniofacial Journal, researchers asked whether remote videos could be used to reliably diagnose a cleft lip or palate. Due to lack of funding in developing countries, citizens’ access to medication, medical devices, and surgeons is limited. Through Hands Across the World, a nonprofit that provides reconstructive surgery for patients with congenital conditions, the researchers reviewed digital video evaluations of patients with oral clefts.

At a hospital in rural Ecuador, 27 patients were evaluated for oral clefts. Researchers compared in-person and remote video assessments made by two separate craniofacial surgeons. The video was taken with an iPhone, without special lighting or camera enhancements. The surgeons who made in-person and remote evaluations nearly always agreed on how patients with a cleft lip or cleft palate should be treated. Those who assessed patients with an alveolar cleft agreed only about half of the time, likely because of the challenges of performing an oral exam via video.

Ultimately, more than 80 percent of the patients examined underwent oral cleft surgery. The researchers speculated that using remote video in diagnosing oral clefts among Ecuadorians could have an economic impact of roughly $7.9 million over 20 years. Worldwide, nearly 5 billion people do not have access to essential surgical care, and almost a third of all deaths and disabilities result from surgically treatable conditions.

“We are well positioned to invent new ways to work with  technology to improve surgical outcomes,” said researcher Christopher Hughes. Among potential improvements, he listed fewer redundancies, less lost time, and more patients seen in the clinic, as well as speedier and more affordable care for patients. “If we can scale our model,” he said, “then we can change the way that children with cleft and craniofacial disorders are treated in their own country.”

The researchers concluded that digital technology could be used to reliably diagnose cleft lips and palates, and reduce the cost to patients with oral clefts. They argue that, most importantly, digital evaluations let surgeons provide high-quality care even in remote, rural locations.

Full text of the article “Remote Digital Preoperative Assessments for Cleft Lip and Palate May Improve Clinical and Economic Impact in Global Plastic Surgery,” The Cleft Palate–Craniofacial Journal, Vol. 54, No. 5, 2017, is now available at https://www.cpcjournal.org/doi/full/10.1597/15-305.

Palmero Healthcare, a Hu-Friedy subsidiary, announced their latest green initiative, Palmero’s X-Ray Apron Recycling Program.

They are committed to environmental responsibility. It’s a key component of their core values and an extension of their mission to protect patients, clinicians, and the practice to include the environment as well.

Their new eco-friendly and environmentally responsible program rewards participants for supporting greener dentistry! Lead aprons have a useful life as their shielding properties wear down gradually. Proper maintenance includes either checking via fluoroscopy or replacing if they show any signs of damage. According to the EPA, recycling lead aprons is the preferred method since it keeps lead out of landfills. Now you can go green with our environmentally friendly X-Ray Apron Recycle/Trade-in Program. All materials will be responsibly disposed of and all lead liners will be properly distributed for processing back to base material. 

If you are only looking for a method of responsible disposal Palmero Healthcare are happy to accommodate, however they hope you will take part in the Trade-In Program and benefit from a complementary apron hanger that will help protect your investment in safety through proper storage.  

RECYCLE 1 X-Ray Apron, RECEIVE 1 FREE Apron Hanger

1. Purchase a new Palmero x-ray apron.

2. Collect old or unwanted X-ray apron of any brand.

3. Contact Customer Service for a Return of Authorization Number (RA#) to register for recycling.

4. Submit invoice with RA# via Fax 203.377.8988 or email customerservice@palmerohealth.com. Include

ship to address, phone, and email.

5. Ship your old apron withRA# for responsible disposal to the address below

6. Acquire a new x-ray apron hanger, an $18.00 retail value for your participation! 

Palmero Healthcare LLC

Attn: X-Ray Recycle/Trade-In Program

120 Goodwin Place

Stratford, CT 06615

DenMat announced it has hired David J. Casper as CEO. Casper previously served as President of Glidewell Laboratories’ Prismatik Dentalcraft and IOS Technologies divisions. Before that, he was Managing Director of Sybron Implant Solutions GmbH.

A revolution when it was first introduced, the multiple benefits of the All-on-4® treatment concept are now well proven.^1-6 The concept was developed to efficiently provide edentulous patients and those with a failing dentition with an immediately-loaded, fixed full-arch prosthesis.* Today, Nobel Biocare continues to evolve the concept, with innovations designed to further enhance treatment results.

The clinically proven approach

The All-on-4® treatment concept enables the rehabilitation of fully edentulous mandibular or maxillary arches using just four implants. By tilting the two posterior implants, longer implants can be used in reduced bone volume, increasing bone-to-implant contact and reducing the need for bone augmentation. With the tilted posterior implants anchored in better quality anterior bone, cantilevers are reduced, improving support for the prostheses.^{7, 8} It’s an approach that is less invasive and cost-intensive for the patient than bone grafting, more efficient for the clinician and, most importantly, is clinically validated to work.^1-6

Supported by almost 20 years of clinical success, the All-on-4® treatment concept offers a reliable solution for patients looking to escape the discomfort that so often comes from wearing a removable denture, or those with a failing dentition that do not want to spend even a day without teeth. Long-term success has been shown in both the edentulous maxilla and mandible, with long-term follow-up of 5–10 years showing cumulative survival rates of 94.8–98.0%.^9,10

These results go hand-in-hand with patient satisfaction, as 98% of All-on-4® treatment concept patients would recommend the treatment. In a study, 95% of 250 patients said that they were satisfied with their new teeth, while 88% said they would definitely recommend similar treatment to friends and colleagues.¹¹

Immediate Function

Today, Nobel Biocare offers more implant options than ever before for the All-on-4® treatment concept, helping clinicians choose the right implant for each case. With Nobel Biocare implants, a unique combination of implant design, surgical protocol and the proven TiUnite surface help to ensure primary stability and maintain it during the healing phase. As such, provided patient criteria are met and adequate primary stability is achieved, Nobel Biocare implants allow a fixed provisional restoration to be loaded on the day of surgery – a key benefit of the All-on-4® treatment concept.

NobelSpeedy, the original and widely documented implant for the All-on-4® treatment concept, is now available in more lengths and diameters for increased surgical flexibility. Shorter, longer and wider variants have been added to an expanded NobelSpeedy Groovy range designed to further help clinicians utilize a graftless approach and achieve cortical or bicortical anchorage where bone quality and quantity are limited, thus allowing more patients to benefit from the proven advantages of the All-on-4® treatment concept.^{12, 13} NobelActive is another proven implant system proven effective for the All-on-4® treatment concept, including when using narrow 3.5-mm-diameter implants.¹⁴

Precision during implant placement for the All-on-4® treatment concept can be maximized with digital diagnostics and guided surgery. Using the NobelClinician software, clinicians can benefit from digital treatment information and conduct prosthetic-driven implant planning for their All-on-4® treatment concept patients. NobelClinician also facilitates collaboration between members of the treatment team and allows easy ordering of all surgical components required for the planned treatment.

Once finalized in NobelClinician, the plan can be predictably transferred to clinical reality using the NobelGuide guided surgery concept, which provides the clinician with ready-to-use patient-specific surgical templates and instruments tailored for the surgery.

In cases where maxillary bone is severely resorbed, zygomatic implant placement may still allow graftless restoration of the full arch on four implants. Building on 25 years of success with Nobel Biocare’s zygomatic implants, the new NobelZygoma implants provide greater surgical and prosthetic flexibility than previous options, while a new tapered apex design has been added to support high primary stability for Immediate Function.

Create an accurate prosthesis in a snap

At the restorative stage of their All-on-4® treatment concept procedure, clinicians using conical connection implants can now take advantage of the new Multi-unit Abutment Plus** – an enhancement of the successful Nobel Biocare Multi-unit Abutment. It is designed to significantly reduce the chair time required to perform provisionalization processes such as a denture conversion – a procedure commonly used for the All-on-4® treatment concept. By introducing a snap-fit function between the temporary cylinders and the abutment, screws are no longer required during the try-in process. This means the common practice of removing the temporary cylinders and the denture several times during the conversion process can be done in a few snaps, with no need to tighten and loosen four screws each time. This new way to work provides a significant time-saving opportunity for the clinician. It can also dramatically increase patient comfort and eliminates worry about the screws potentially dropping out. 

NobelProcera – For an optimized final result

When it comes to the final restoration, NobelProcera offers a wide variety of precision-milled fixed and fixed-removable restorations for the All-on-4® treatment concept patients.  Patients looking for maximum esthetics can opt for individualized crowns on an implant bridge, while those requiring a cost-effective restoration can select a removable denture in acrylic on an implant bar. Regardless which option is chosen, NobelProcera offers easy handling for the clinician and excellent esthetics and function for the patient.^15,16

Restoring more than a smile

The All-on-4® treatment concept puts dental professionals at the forefront of their profession. In fact, 24% of those that attended a Nobel Biocare All-on-4® treatment concept course grew the number of implants they placed by 50% the following year.¹⁷

Such success is largely thanks to the popularity of the All-on-4® treatment concept among patients.11 Reduced cost, less trauma, Immediate Function and excellent esthetic results are all clear patient benefits, as is the prospect of a solution that feels like natural teeth. Greater chewing ability, improved speech, increased comfort, less bone resorption – the list of attributes that can help drive patient acceptance goes on and on. Above all, these benefits in combination lead to a potentially life-changing result: the return of a patient’s self-confidence.

References

1.     Patzelt SB, Bahat O, Reynolds MA, Strub JR (2014) The all-on-four treatment concept: a systematic review. Clin Implant Dent Relat Res 16(6):836-55.

2.     Lopes A, Maló P, de Araújo Nobre M, Sanchez-Fernández  E(2015) The NobelGuide® All-on-4® Treatment Concept for Rehabilitation of Edentulous Jaws: A Prospective Report on Medium- and Long-Term Outcomes. Clin Implant Dent Relat Res. doi: 10.1111/cid.12260.

3.     Maló P, de Araújo Nobre M, Lopes A, Ferro A, Gravito I (2016) All-on-4® Treatment Concept for the Rehabilitation of the Completely Edentulous Mandible: A 7-Year Clinical and 5-Year Radiographic Retrospective Case Series with Risk Assessment for Implant Failure and Marginal Bone Level. Clin Implant Dent Relat Res. doi: 10.1111/cid.12282.

4.     Mozzati M, Arata V, Gallesio G, Mussano F, Carossa S. Immediate postextractive dental implant placement with immediate loading on four implants for mandibular full-arch rehabilitation: a retrospective analysis. Clin Implant Dent Relat Res 2013;15:332-40.

5.     Weinstein R, Agliardi E, Fabbro MD, Romeo D, Francetti L. Immediate rehabilitation of the extremely atrophic mandible with fixed full-prosthesis supported by four implants. Clin Implant Dent Relat Res 2012;14:434-41.

6.     Maló P, de Araújo Nobre M, Lopes A, Ferro A, Gravito I (2016) Complete Edentulous Rehabilitation Using an Immediate Function Protocol and an Implant Design Featuring a Straight Body, Anodically Oxidized Surface, and Narrow Tip with Engaging Threads Extending to the Apex of the Implant: A 5-year Retrospective Clinical Study. Int J Oral Maxillofac Implants 31 (1) 153-61.

7.     Malo P, de Araujo Nobre M, Lopes A. The use of computer-guided flapless implant surgery and four implants placed in immediate function to support a fixed denture: preliminary results after a mean follow-up period of thirteen months. J Prosthet Dent. 2007 Jun; 97(6 Suppl): S26-34. Erratum in: J Prosthet Dent. 2008 Mar; 99(3): 167.

8.     Aparicio, C., Perales, P. & Rangert, B. (2001) Tilted implants as an alternative to maxillary sinus grafting: a clinical, radiologic, and periotest study. Clinical Implant Dentistry & Related Research 3: 39–49.

9.     Maló P, de Araújo Nobre M, Lopes A, Francischone C, Rigolizzo M. "All-on-4" immediate-function concept for completely edentulous maxillae: a clinical report  on the medium (3 years) and long-term (5 years) outcomes. Clin Implant Dent Relat Res. 2012 May;14 Suppl 1:e139-50. doi: 10.1111/j.1708-8208.2011.00395.x. Epub 2011 Oct 18. PubMed PMID: 22008153.

10.  Malo P, de Araújo Nobre M, Lopes A, Moss SM, Molina GJ. A longitudinal study of the survival of All-on-4 implants in the mandible with up to 10 years of follow-up. J Am Dent Assoc. 2011 Mar;142(3):310-20. PubMed PMID: 21357865.

11.  Babbush CA, Posttreatment quantification of patient experiences with full-arch implant treatment using a modification of the OHIP-14 questionnaire. J Oral Implantol 2012; 38:251-60.

12.  Malo P, de Araujo Nobre MA, Lopes AV, Rodrigues R. Immediate loading short implants inserted on low bone quantity for the rehabilitation of the edentulous maxilla using an All-on-4 design. J Oral Rehabil epub ahead 2015.

13.  Vicent et al. (2016), Clinical outcome of extra-long tilted for the rehabilitation of complete edentulous atrophic maxilla using the all-on-four concept. Implant Therapy Outcomes, Surgical Aspects. Clin. Oral Impl. Res., 27: 269. doi:10.1111/clr.267_12958

14.  Babbush CA, Kanawati A, Brokloff J. A new approach to the All-on-Four treatment concept using narrow platform NobelActive implants.J. Oral Implantol 2013; 39(3):314-25.

15.  Katsoulis J, Mericske-Stern R, Rotkina L, Zbären C, Enkling N, Blatz MB. Precision of fit of implant-supported screw-retained 10-unit computer-aided-designed and computer-aided-manufactured frameworks made from zirconium dioxide and titanium: an in vitro study. Clin Oral Implants Res. 2014 Feb;25(2):165-74.

16.  Katsoulis J, Mericske-Stern R, Yates DM, Izutani N, Enkling N, Blatz MB. In vitro precision of fit of computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing titanium and zirconium dioxide bars. Dent Mater. 2013 Sep;29(9):945-53.

17.  Data on file: Comparing annual increase in customer net sales (2013-2014)