SprintRay announced SprintRay Crown™, a 3D printing resin poised to help improve the quality of restorative care in digital dentistry.

SprintRay Crown™ is a materials collaboration between the two companies, that allows dental professionals to 3D print crowns and other restorations in their offices for a fraction of the cost of other methods. With high accuracy and a print time of fewer than 60 minutes, SprintRay Crown™ is poised to improve the accessibility of custom dental care.

"With this new material introduction, SprintRay continues to shape the future of the dental industry, widening the reach and scope of digital technology.", remarked Sumeet Jain, Vice President of Materials at SprintRay. "By reducing the cost and lead times associated with restorative procedures, we're enhancing dentistry for patients and doctors."

SprintRay Crown™ at a glance:

• Class IIa medical product

• Outstanding marginal integrity

• Easy to handle, easy to polish

• Formulated for radiographic visibility

"Dental 3D printing solutions, especially for durable restorations, are becoming increasingly important. In addition to the excellent material properties and good esthetics, are the low material costs, the speed in production and the customizability of the dental objects that make SprintRay Crown™ future-proof," said Thomas Kwiedor, Head of Business Development 3D Printing for BEGO. "The expansion of the partnership with SprintRay and the introduction of SprintRay Crown will further accelerate this trend."

SprintRay Crown™ is a ceramic-filled hybrid material for 3D printing permanent single crowns, inlays, onlays, and veneers. It delivers an excellent fit and reproducible results, allowing dental professionals to provide budget-friendly custom restorations confidently.  

The collaboration between the nation's leaders in artificial intelligence and dental solutions brings the first FDA-cleared AI platform for radiograph analysis to dentists everywhere.

A new partnership unites Overjet, the national leader in dental AI, with Dental Whale, the leading practice solutions and learning provider in North America. Dental Whale Chief Executive Officer Joe Cavaretta said, "This new partnership with Overjet will provide clinicians in the Dental Whale network with access to state-of-the-art AI radiograph technology that helps them identify the best treatment opportunities for their patients." Dental Whale currently serves over 20,000 private and dental support organizations.

Overjet's FDA-cleared AI technology instantly analyzes dental x-rays to quantify decay and bone loss, plus reviews historical radiographs in the patient base to identify potential treatment opportunities. It quantifies and color-codes the findings, creating a powerful patient education tool as providers share the findings with their patients.

"Overjet and Dental Whale share the same mission: to improve oral health for everyone," said Dr. Wardah Inam, CEO and co-founder of Overjet. "With Overjet's powerful AI technology, practices will be able to boost efficiency, practice performance, and patient outcomes."

Through My Dental Whale™ Platform, clinicians and office staff have full control of their practice by streamlining access to essential business and marketing services, supply and equipment ordering, masterclass training, data intelligence, and now, through this new partnership with Overjet, AI-powered radiograph analysis.

Dental Whale is hosting Overjet at its annual Business Immersion Summit in Las Vegas, Nevada, Sept. 23-24, 2022, where it plans to formally launch the partnership. To attend and learn more, visit Summit.DentalWhale.com.

Adding to the depth of research at the dental medicine and engineering interface, Penn Dental Medicine welcomes recent recruit Dr. Kyle Vining, who joined Penn Dental Medicine and its Center for Innovation & Precision Dentistry (CiPD) on July 1. Dr. Vining will be appointed Assistant Professor of Preventive and Restorative Sciences, School of Dental Medicine, and Department of Materials Science, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, pending approval by Penn Dental Medicine’s personnel committees and the Provost’s office. In addition to his primary faculty appointment at Penn Dental Medicine, he will have a secondary appointment at Penn’s School of Engineering.

“We are thrilled that Dr. Vining has joined us,” says Penn Dental Medicine’s Morton Amsterdam Dean, Dr. Mark S. Wolff. “With his combination of dental and engineering training and depth of research experience, he will play a vital role in the work and advancement of the CiPD and our goal of accelerating the development of new solutions and devices to address oral health needs.”

Dr. Vining, who holds a PhD in bioengineering from Harvard University (2020) and a DDS from the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry (2014), comes to Penn Dental Medicine from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, where he has been a postdoctoral researcher for the past two years. A primary focus of Dr. Vining’s research has been targeting mechanical regulation of tissue inflammation in bone marrow disease and head and neck cancer. He is also developing strategies to target inflammation and promote tissue repair and regeneration in oral and craniofacial diseases. Among his projects in the area of biomaterials development, he engineered a novel antimicrobial coating for titanium dental implants and developed a new polymeric dental material that supports differentiation and proliferation of dental pulp stem cells for regenerative dentistry applications. His most recent work was published in Nature Materials.

Committed to teaching the next generation of clinician scientists, Dr. Vining was an active research mentor to both graduate and undergraduate students throughout his postdoctoral training. He is currently a Councilor in the Oral & Maxillofacial Research Group of the International Association for Dental Research and is a scientific peer reviewer for 13 journals, including the American Chemical Society journals and the Journal of Dental Research.

“Dr. Vining is an ideal fit for the vision and mission of the CiPD,” says Penn Dental Medicine’s Dr. Hyun (Michel) Koo, Co-Director of the CiPD. “With a secondary appointment in the School of Engineering, he will be instrumental in continuing to strengthen our engineering collaborations and teaching our students to work across disciplines to advance research, training, and entrepreneurship in this realm.”

"Kyle's work at the interface of immunology, oral health, and materials brings exciting new directions to both schools and to the CiPD,” adds Dr. Kathleen Stebe, Co-Director of the CiPD at Penn Engineering.

Dr. Shu Yang, Chair of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering agrees. “Kyle’s research in developing novel biomaterials that interface with dental tissues and biomechanics will strengthen our leadership in biomaterials for precision health engineering.”  

New release saves design time and offers more intuitive workflows from CAD to CAM

exocad, an Align Technology, Inc. company and a leading dental CAD/CAM software provider, today announced the release of DentalCAD 3.1 Rijeka, the next generation of its powerful CAD software for labs and full-service clinics. With more than 45 new and over 85 enhanced features, the new release marks another milestone in exocad’s continuous optimization of workflows for increased productivity.

“DentalCAD 3.1 Rijeka is the result of our countless conversations with customers and the dedicated research of our software developers,” said Tillmann Steinbrecher, CEO exocad. “I’m excited about the broad scope of new features and improvements that brings more speed and smoother workflows, from treatment planning to design and manufacturing.”

Easier collaboration between labs and dentists

In exocad’s Smile Creator add-on module, many new features await, including more visualization options, such as improved color adjustment for more realistic preview images, and a new slider-based before-and-after view. The new “Smile Design” PDF report provides comprehensive documentation of the esthetic planning process to improve communication between dentists and labs. Additionally, the new “Smile Window” offers instant in-face visualization throughout the CAD workflow. Users see the result of the design within the patient photo in real time.

Get more out of designs

DentalCAD 3.1 Rijeka offers users more efficiency, enabling them to reuse custom tooth setups for multiple indications along the patient case journey. The same shape and setup can be easily used for a mock-up model, a clip-on smile, a temporary restoration, and the final work.

Minimize design time, maximize results

With this new release, exocad speeds up the design of both single-unit restorations and complex, upper and lower restorations. Articulator movements can now be recalculated and visualized on the fly.

DentalCAD 3.1 Rijeka also expands the functionality of Instant Anatomic Morphing, allowing faster design of single-unit restorations with fewer clicks. When a pre-op scan is available, users benefit from an even more highly automated generation of crowns: The previous anatomy copies automatically, making it faster and easier to preserve function and anatomical shape for the patient.

In the Full Denture Module, posterior setups can now be customized as well, providing more control over denture setups. Users can easily expand libraries by saving individual presets, now also in single-arch dentures.

The Model Creator module introduces new “Quick Models” for highly automated model creation, to further save time and minimize the need for user interaction during model design.

Integrate more smoothly with equipment in the lab

exocad’s Virtual Articulator module provides an accurate simulation of more real, physical articulators than any other CAD software*, and in this release, exocad has added even more devices, including the popular Ivoclar and SAM articulators.

The newly modernized exocam, exocad’s integrated CAM solution for milling machines, sets new standards for ease of use. For 3D printing, exoprint now integrates with many additional devices, enabling direct production workflow integration from exocad with more than 40 3D printers, including those of the most popular manufacturers.

Other major highlights of the DentalCAD 3.1 Rijeka release include:

• Improved case documentation with new built-in screenshot management tools for collecting, editing, and tagging screenshots

• Anatomic free-forming features improve ease of use: The affected parts of the design are now visually highlighted, and the user has an overview at a glance of the adaptation parameters to be applied

• The new stock abutment design workflow enables the design of implant-based restorations based on stock abutment libraries

In conjunction with this latest release, exocad launches the new my.exocad portal and introduces end user registration, which will be required to use DentalCAD 3.1 Rijeka.

exocad will offer hands-on demonstrations of the new DentalCAD 3.1 Rijeka release at Insights 2022, the company’s global community event, taking place October 3-4, 2022, in Palma de Mallorca, Spain. The two-day event will include numerous opportunities for attendees to discover more about the latest Rijeka features from dental industry leaders and application specialists. More information is available at exocad.com/insights2022.

DentalCAD 3.1 Rijeka is an essential part of the Align Digital Platform, an integrated suite of proprietary technologies and services delivered as seamless end-to-end solution to customers.

The release is now available in the EU and other select markets. exocad names its releases after current EU “European Capitals of Culture” and selected the Croatian city of Rijeka for this year’s release.

Additional information is available at exocad.com/our-products/dentalcad-rijeka

*Data on file 

Decision helps assure Zest customers receive genuine LOCATOR® products

Zest Dental Solutions, the only manufacturer of the Zest LOCATOR® Family of Abutment Systems, including the LOCATOR® Overdenture Implant System, announces a significant legal victory which solidifies and reinforces the legitimacy of its LOCATOR® product line.

On Monday, July 18, 2022, a Southern District of California court issued an opinion and order in Zest Anchors, LLC v. Geryon Ventures, LLC, 22-cv-230, that preliminarily enjoins and restrains Geryon Ventures, LLC, d/b/a DESS-USA, and Terrats Medical Sociedad Limitada, which sell overdenture products under the trade name “DESS,” from importing into the United States and “using in any way” the DESS overdenture system that imitates Zest’s LOCATOR® product line while Zest pursues its claims.

The ruling helps to assure Zest customers, new and old, that when they buy Zest LOCATOR® products they will receive the genuine article. Zest filed this lawsuit after learning that DESS had partnered with one of Zest’s former LOCATOR® distributors (ZimVie, formerly known as Zimmer Biomet) and was preparing to begin offering DESS’s infringing products, which copy the well-known aesthetic features of Zest’s market leading LOCATOR® overdenture products, across the United States. Importantly, the Court not only enjoined DESS but all persons and entities acting in concert or participating with DESS to import, market, or sell DESS’s infringing products (including infringing products sold by ZimVie).

Tom Stratton, CEO of Zest Dental Solutions stated, “The Court’s opinion and order is a key signal that DESS’s transparent efforts to create infringing products that deceive consumers and capitalize on Zest’s reputation and success will not be permitted. Zest intends to vigorously pursue its rights in the litigation as part of its vigilant efforts to defend its intellectual property, protect its customers, and serve patients.”

To learn more about Zest Dental Solutions and how the LOCATOR® family can help you exceed patient expectations and grow your practice, call 800-262-2310 or visit www.zestdent.com.

MediNiche, Inc. announces the introduction of new BONE-TITE, the first osseointegration support supplement for dental implant patients.

BONE-TITE is an over-the-counter dietary supplement product developed in conjunction with prosthodontists, periodontists, and other dental professional experts in bone metabolism and bone growth for use with patients that may require nutritional insurance before and after dental implant procedures. BONE-TITE provides key vitamins, minerals, and nutrients known to be helpful for proper bone and soft tissue growth, repair, and overall health during implant osseointegration.

The BONE-TITE formula is built around a “Bone-Building-Complex” of key ingredients that are associated with benefits to help heal, repair, and strengthen alveolar bone structure. Formulation ingredients include Calcium, vitamins C, D-3 and K-1, and minerals Magnesium, Zinc, Manganese, Potassium and Copper, and bone fortifying agents such as Ipriflavone, Bromelain, Boron, and L-Lysine.

The osseointegration specific components in BONE-TITE may be helpful for patients that, due to deficiencies or underlying health issues, may be susceptible to reduced osseointegration and implant failure and may require or benefit from specific nutritional support.

Thomas J. Balshi, DDS, PhD, FACP, a leading implantologist and BONE-TITE advocate, states “When a regimen is started prior to an implant procedure, I believe BONE-TITE enhances osseointegration strength, even on the day implants are placed, which is a great asset for immediate loading with the Teeth in a Day™ protocol.

BONE-TITE also has an improved tablet with an excellent dissolution rate. A poor tablet dissolution rate can impede the absorption of calcium and other key nutrients. Many commercially available nutritional supplement tablets containing high levels of calcium have been proven to lack the dissolving characteristics necessary to allow proper calcium absorption by the body.¹

Clinical and academic research have demonstrated that intake of key nutrients is directly related to oral and, specifically, alveolar and periodontal health. "Nutrition plays a key role in osseointegration," says Samuel Alioto, President and CEO, MediNiche.

"In order to help ensure optimal osseointegration and soft tissue repair before and after implant placement, it is critical for patients to follow the pre- and post-procedure recommendations provided by their dental professional.

"With the introduction of BONE-TITE, dental professionals now have the option to provide implant patients with those nutrients that have demonstrated in well controlled clinical studies to be important to the health of alveolar bone.", said Mr. Alioto

BONE-TITE will be promoted to dental professionals for recommendation to patients before and after implant procedures. Patients will obtain the product from a dental practice during implant procedure orientation or with doctor recommendation, purchase the product online at www.bonetite.com, www.mediniche.com or via the toll-free telephone number, 888-325-2395.

MediNiche marketing plans for BONE-TITE® include direct selling, dental products trade advertising, patient first purchase discount programs, email blasts, postcards and dental professional meetings attendance. In addition, MediNiche will extend a special BONE-TITE Introductory Offer with discount pricing and an attractive terms available for all dental practice customers. Dental professionals can visit https://bonetite.com/professionaloffer/ access the purchase offers or call, toll-free, 888-325-2395 for more information. BONE-TITE patient discount / free shipping coupons are also available for dental practices not interested in direct dispensing.  

Reference:

1. Heaney RP, Recker RR, Hinders SM. Variability of calcium absorption. Am J Clin Nutr 1988;47:262-4

BURST Oral Care continues its mission of creating brighter smiles with the launch of their new Teeth Whitening Trays by BURST. Designed for safe and easy use, this powerful at-home whitening treatment was created with the collaborative support of hundreds of members from BURST's community of over 35,000 hygienists and dentists to ensure the trays are effective, yet gentle enough for even the most sensitive smiles.

The new trays combine 12.5% hydrogen peroxide with acidity-lowering potassium hydroxide and soothing xylitol to achieve professional grade brightening results. Each custom-fit tray comes prefilled to reach in-between spaces and hard-to-reach places with no guesswork, molding, or impressions – just hassle-free 15-minute treatments for a noticeably brighter smile after one use, and dramatically whiter teeth after the full 7-day course. The trays are vegan and cruelty-free, and the formula contains no parabens, phthalates, sulfates, major allergens, artificial sweeteners, flavors, or colors.

"At BURST, we know the difference a bright smile can make for one's confidence. With our new Teeth Whitening Trays, we wanted to make whitening easy, safe, and accessible. These trays provide hassle-free whitening in 15 minutes for a noticeably brighter smile, either at home and on your schedule," says BURST Co-founder and President Brittany Stewart.

"We are proud to introduce a professional grade, at-home whitening treatment that works. Tested and approved by our dental community, these trays target those stubborn stains from the comfort of your own home," says Hamish Khayat, BURST Oral Care Co-Founder and CEO. "At BURST, we never settle when it comes to quality oral care – this new offering was carefully formulated with the optimal amount of hydrogen peroxide for truly amazing results, while being carefully balanced with soothing ingredients for an effective, easy, and elevated way to whiten at home."

The BURST Teeth Whitening Trays are $79.99 for a full course of 7 treatments, and are available at burstoralcare.com.

A partnership to provide educational resources about eating disorders for orthodontists and orthodontic staff.

The American Association of Orthodontists (AAO) has announced a new partnership with the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA). NEDA, the leading non-profit in the field of eating disorders, supports individuals and families affected by eating disorders and serves as a catalyst for prevention, cures, and access to quality care. This partnership will provide educational resources for orthodontists to help them recognize eating disorder warning signs and to understand triggering behaviors and language that can cause harm.

Norman Nagel, DDS, MS, President of the AAO, reacted to the news, "Orthodontists understand their significant role as a healthcare provider. The partnership with NEDA will enable them to help their patients. I am confident that each of our members will utilize the NEDA educational materials to help recognize the signs, provide valuable resources to patients and their parents, and improve the care they provide to patients with eating disorders by learning to avoid triggering language and behaviors."

"We are thrilled about our partnership with the AAO. By understanding the etiologies of eating disorders, recognizing the mouth warning signs, and safely intervening, at an early stage, when appropriate, dental professionals can help the millions of Americans with these potentially deadly diseases start down the road to recovery." Elizabeth Thompson, NEDA's CEO continued, "We look forward to supporting AAO and its members as you embrace this sensitive and vitally important work."

Eating disorders are serious, life-threatening physical and mental illnesses that can affect anyone, regardless of age, race, gender identity, sexual orientation, or background. According to a study conducted by Deloitte Access Economics, more than 5% of the population struggles with an eating disorder, and many of these develop in adolescence and early adulthood. Given that more than 65% of orthodontic patients are under the age of 18 orthodontists are in a unique position to identify and support patients with eating disorders.

Warning signs, such as damage to teeth enamel, can signal to the orthodontist that the patient may have an eating disorder. Orthodontists can improve the care they provide by being sensitive to the language they use and restrictions they may prescribe. For example, food restrictions for individuals with braces may cause mental health distress to someone with an eating disorder.

Additionally, the new partnership between the AAO and NEDA demonstrates yet another reason why in-person examination and care is an essential part of orthodontic and dental treatment. When orthodontists examine a patient in-person prior to beginning orthodontic treatment, they are examining primarily for conditions and factors directly related to the treatment—but, the in-person examination also provides an opportunity for detection of numerous other conditions and problems not directly related to the orthodontic treatment, such as signs and symptoms of eating disorders. Information provided by NEDA and distributed by the AAO to AAO members will allow AAO members to add detection of potential eating disorders to the benefits provided by an in-person examination.

Resources will be available for AAO members and their orthodontic staff by Fall of 2022.

About the American Association of Orthodontists: 

The American Association of Orthodontists represents more than 18,500 orthodontist members throughout the United States, Canada, and abroad. Founded in 1900, AAO is the world's oldest and largest dental specialty organization. AAO is dedicated to ethically advancing the art and science of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics worldwide; improving the overall oral healthcare of the public; advocating for the health and safety of the public; educating the public about the benefits of orthodontic treatment provided by an orthodontic specialist. For more information, visit aaoinfo.org. 

About NEDA:

The National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) is the largest nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting individuals and families affected by eating disorders. NEDA as a catalyst for prevention, cures and access to quality care. Through its programs and services, NEDA raises awareness, builds communities of support and recovery, funds research and puts essential resources into the hands of those in need. For more information, visit www.nationaleatingdisorders.org.

Medical-Dental Integration (MDI) provides dental teams with a proactive approach that elevates the level of care provided to their patients improving their systemic health. 

The second annual Florida Combined Life–Florida Blue Foundation MDI symposium on August 24, 2022, allows dentists and hygienists to convene virtually to earn four dental continuing education units (CEUs) through the American Academy of Dental Hygiene. All members of the dental team, other health care professionals, educators, and state and county health officials will gain practical knowledge from this program. Breaks and a Q&A session will be included. 

To learn more, visit https://www.floridabluedental.com/providers/news/register-for-the-medical-dental-integration-symposium-on-aug.24/

Nowak Dental has announced registration for its Nowak Invitational 2022 free CE event. The event will take place on Saturday, September 17, 2022 from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. CDT at Top Golf in Charlotte, North Carolina. Courses will highlight new products and techniques in the dental laboratory industry and will feature presentations from industry experts, including:

Sasha Der Avanessian from Harvest speaking about the Loyalty Dilemma

Doug Statham from Keystone Industries giving an Introduction on 3d Dental Resins

Cory Lambertson from Asiga on "What makes Asiga printers Unique"

Josh Fitzgerald & Duff Wilson speaking about Aidite Zirconia and staining options.

More classes from Imes, Elos, SS White, Roland and many more

For more information and to register, click here