quip, the modern oral health company, announces the launch of its latest product, quip Mints. quip's expansion into the mint category is a testament to its mission of improving the oral health of every mouth, by providing a complete oral care solution through a comprehensive range of personal care products and professional care services.

quip Mints are carefully crafted with oral health supporting ingredients, including a boost of vitamin D, zinc, and xylitol, and free of any cavity promoting sugar. One quip Mint contains 25% of the daily dose of one's vitamin D intake to support a healthy mouth.1

Every quip Mint is packed with powerful peppermint flavor to freshen breath throughout the day, even when on-the-go.

"quip products are always crafted with both the oral health and overall wellbeing of the customer in mind," said Simon Enever, Co-Founder and CEO of quip. "Our latest Mints launch is no exception and is designed to improve confidence through fresher breath, while supporting oral health with the addition of vitamin D, zinc, and xylitol. We are excited to take a fresh approach to a stale category by providing modern customers with the strong fresh flavor and health-conscious ingredients they are looking for."

quip Mints come with a travel-friendly reusable dispenser that is sleek and easy to store. Users of quip ADA accepted Gum can use the same refillable, one-click dispenser interchangeably with quip Mints. Users can choose the dispenser color to match their style, available in plastic (White) and metal colorways (Black, Pink, Rainbow, Slate, Silver, Copper, and Gold).

Users can subscribe to a quip Mint refill plan and get a plastic dispenser for free, by receiving 3, 9 or 18 individually wrapped packs of mints (each pack contains 10 pieces), delivered to their door automatically every three months.

quip Mints are available now at getquip.com/mints starting at $10 for a starter kit that includes three packs of 10 mints and a refillable dispenser. For the latest from quip, visit @quip or getquip.com.

A Strategic Investment Resulting in Industry Innovation

• NSK has acquired DCI International, LLC, the fastest-growing US dental equipment manufacturer and world’s largest dental parts manufacturer.

• The acquisition price has not been disclosed.

NSK has reached a definitive agreement to indirectly purchase 51% of the membership interests of DCI International, LLC (“DCI”). As a result of this transaction, 100% of DCI’s membership interests will be held by NSK. This strategic combination unlocks further growth potential of NSK and DCI to serve customers better and compete in the dental industry, especially in the U.S. market. The whole DCI management team will stay in the company. In addition, the DCI brand and sales channels will stay as is.

“This is a game-changing combination which will provide both NSK and DCI with the broader solutions, customer reach, and capabilities to solidify our position as a leading provider of dental chair units and instruments in our market. DCI and NSK values are very similar. Both companies have always practiced the 'customer first' principle with all sincerity to provide satisfaction and excitement to our customers. We also try to manage our business based on people. Both companies have very good and loyal people and very strong teams. We also place great importance on long-term relationships with our customers. We feel that these values are a strength that both companies have over other competitors. By bringing the two companies together, we will further heighten our strengths and provide our customers with the best possible experience,” said Eiichi Nakanishi, Nakanishi/NSK Group CEO.

“I started DCI 40 years ago with the core values of making our customer’s life easier, enhancing the life of our employees, and providing dental care to those in need. NSK has demonstrated these same principles and will be a good steward of these values, while investing in DCI’s continued growth. I’m excited about the future and what this means for our customers and employees,” said John Spencer, DCI International CEO.

The anticipated closing date is 31 August 2023. However, the transaction is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to be closed in the coming weeks.

Introducing CURIE Plus - the Ultimate UV Curing Oven for Dental 3D Printing.

Ackuretta, a global manufacturer of high-precision 3D printing solutions for dental professionals, has announced its upcoming live product unveiling for its new UV Curing Oven, the CURIE Plus. This new product brings unseen esthetics, enhanced mechanical properties, guaranteed biocompatibility, and ultra-accurate results. CURIE Plus takes the work out of your workflow while maximizing the quality of your applications.

Join the global launch event for CURIE Plus live on September 6, 2023. Guest Speakers Jimmy & Kelly Fincher (Owners of Cosmetic Advantage Dental Lab) share their experience testing the advanced curing solution. Don't miss this chance to get a first look at the newest additions to the Ackuretta 3D Printing Solution in action!

Experience CURIE Plus' high performance:

● Chamber Capacity: Capable of curing 8 full arches simultaneously to maximize efficiency.

● A New Standard in Simplicity: Seamless integration with SOL for a 1-click workflow from print to cure.

● Validated with Top Resins: Class IIa biocompatibility that ensures optimal performance and print quality.

● Instant Library Updates: Pre-set curing parameter library & Wi-Fi enabled resin profile updates

● Made for Nitrogen Integration: Compatible with a range of nitrogen sources for enhanced mechanical properties, and improving finishing.

For more information and to register for the live product unveiling, click here.

Orascoptic has added a new sports frame to its collection. Perfect for the clinician prioritizing comfort, Phantom is a lightweight frame option that doesn’t compromise performance.

Constructed using titanium, Phantom is the lightest sports frame available with built-in prescription on the market. Phantom is 15% lighter than the leading competitor, with prescription. Designed to support loupes and prioritize comfort, this is a frame that allows for a loupe as custom as its user.

Phantom offers all the features clinicians love – such as bendable temple tips, an adjustable nose pad, cable control channel, and flex hinges – without added weight.

Orascoptic’s vision is to drive the best patient outcomes by providing Superior Visualization for every healthcare procedure. The inspiration behind Phantom and all Orascoptic products is to challenge the status quo – to elevate dental and medical procedures. Available in five stunning colors, Phantom is an excellent choice for blending comfort and style.

Learn more about Phantom at www.orascoptic.com/Phantom 

New technology offers simple steps to screen for cavities and get referred for care

Cigna Healthcare announced that its dental customers are now able to use their smartphone to screen for potential oral health issues, such as cavities and gum disease. The no-cost screenings are powered by SmartScan and aim to encourage the millions of people who suffer from anxiety around dental visits to get informed about their oral health from the comfort of their home.

“Many people fear the dentist or the costs that follow a dental visit, which causes them to delay care, making them susceptible to tooth decay and gum disease,” said Dr. Cary Sun, chief dental officer at Cigna Healthcare. “Together with SmartScan, we are providing a quick and convenient way for people to access an oral health screening from home.”

The online tool by Dental.com provides step-by-step instructions to help a customer take five guided photos of their teeth and mouth. SmartScan analyzes the photos, which are then reviewed by a Cigna Healthcare network dentist. In addition to providing an oral health score and personalized dental tips, the tool identifies areas of concern and helps connect customers to a virtual or in-person dentist for follow-up care. SmartScan can also be used for quick check-ins between one’s dental visits, especially if a customer starts to experience tooth pain.

Roughly 36% of adults have not had a dental exam or cleaning in the past year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “While this is not a replacement for regular, in-person dental care, this tool empowers people to stay aware of their oral health and provides peace of mind when dental concerns arise,” Dr. Sun said.

This virtual care solution is part of Cigna Dental Health Connect™, a suite of clinical programs designed to help employers provide meaningful dental care services tailored for their workforce, and makes it more convenient for customers to access care when and where they need it. It is available beginning Aug. 17 to more than 16.5 million of Cigna Healthcare customers with dental coverage through their employers or ACA Marketplace plans. In addition to SmartScan, Cigna Healthcare customers can access other services such as on-demand dental care, including emergency care, through Teledentix.

Shofu Dental Corporation is proud to announce the release of DentaLaze the Wireless Diode Laser on September 1, 2023.

DentaLaze is a cost-effective wireless diode laser with superior performance and a compact, ergonomic design. It delivers 3W constant and 5W pulsed infrared power at 808nm with a distinctive green aiming beam for enhanced visual clarity during procedures. It is effective for a multitude of intraoral soft tissue procedures such as gingivectomy, frenectomy, and impression troughing. DentaLaze is perfect for the dental practice looking for greater patient comfort for soft tissue procedures. This diode laser runs continuously for 45 minutes on a single charge. It is exceptionally durable with scratch-resistant solid metal construction. The simple, sturdy, and lightweight wireless design is quick to set up, easily portable, and does not take up precious counter space. The DentaLaze kit contains five single-use fiber optic tips to maximize efficiency and avoid cross-contamination, one slide-on shield to protect loupe operators, two goggles, and 50 barrier sleeves. Additional disposable fiber optic tips (25/pk) and barrier sleeves (500/pk) are available separately.

More information on DentaLaze Wireless Dental Diode Laser can be found on Shofu’s website at shofu.com or call 800.827.4638.  

His professional drive for access to dental care aligns with both DentaQuest’s and the nonprofit’s missions to improve the oral health of all 

Steven J. Brady, assistant vice president of client engagement for DentaQuest, recently joined the board of the American Dental Association Foundation (ADAF), reinforcing both a professional and personal dedication to improving access to oral health.

The Foundation leverages philanthropy, professional development and leadership support to foster healthy communities. This includes programs such as Give Kids A Smile® in which children can receive free dental care, financial assistance for dentists and their families in need, and support and recognition for promising dental leaders.

As a board member, Steven will work collaboratively to support the philanthropic vision and will serve as an ambassador for the Foundation and its efforts. Board members typically serve for four years.

“This country is facing a shortage of dental professionals, particularly in communities of color or those that are low-income,” Steven said. “Fostering and providing opportunities for the next generation of dentistry leaders will go a long way to improving the oral health of all, which is the mission that I work towards every day with my DentaQuest colleagues. We know oral health is critical to overall health and wellness, and I am thrilled to lend my support to the ADA Foundation’s efforts to advance leaders in dentistry and deliver care to those in need.”

Steven brings to the board more than two decades of experience in insurance finance and management, nonprofit organizations, education, health care, and business. Today, he oversees teams of up to 27 professionals who manage client partnerships to bring dental benefits to millions of people in multiple states. He also serves as an annual guest lecturer at the Meharry Medical College School of Dentistry and as an adjunct professor at the Tennessee State University College of Business. Steven also serves on the board of TeamSmile, the nation’s premier advocacy group that partners oral health professionals with professional athletic organizations to provide life-changing dental care to underserved children across the country.  

Aeras Intel, a visionary MedTech company, is proud to announce its official launch as an independent company. Aeras Intel’s origins come from IoT innovations within the dental manufacturer DENTALEZ and its unyielding mission to simplify all aspects of managing critical equipment and redirecting the time and energy savings to improving the user and patient experiences. Aeras Intel is now operating as a privately-held, independent Delaware-based corporation, Aeras, Inc.

After the successful development and commercial launch of its fully integrated IoT solution enabling DENTALEZ’s suite of smart utility room products, Aeras Intel was spun out into this new venture, which is underpinned by a growth and transformation-oriented mindset to evangelize and accelerate IoT adoption in the dental and broader healthcare industries. Aeras Intel now offers its expanding customer base a full-stack IoT offering that includes device sensoring, cloud data transmission and analytics, and a full feature IoT service platform with full user administration accessible from any web browser.

The health care ecosystem is experiencing unprecedented changes, compelling traditional manufacturers to rethink conventional commercial models. Companies need to evolve beyond their traditional product supplier role to become a value-driven, strategic business partner to the healthcare industry. IoT unlocks tremendous value-creation opportunities; how to monetize new value propositions is not easy at this stage of the game.

Gartner claims that by 2025 over 95% of new digital workloads will be deployed on cloud-native platforms, up from 30% in 2021. Cloud solutions will be pervasive in the future and anything non-cloud will be considered legacy*. This rapid growth trajectory certainly explains the desire for virtually every tech company to throw their hat into the ring to solve the MedTech cloud-based ecosystem. Who to trust right now is the question being asked in the market. From blueprints to tangible results Aeras Intel’s platform systems have been tested in real-time in real dental practices, proven to deliver on the promise and trusted in some of the most critical patient/doctor interactions in healthcare. The company's number 1 value is trust.

Backed by a legacy of innovation, customer-centricity, and a profound understanding of emerging technologies, Aeras Intel is accelerating IoT adoption and establishing data and communication standards. By leveraging IoT, artificial intelligence, and cloud computing, the company is creating groundbreaking platforms and applications that unlock tangible value for all stakeholders in the healthcare value chain. A recent survey on the future of the cloud from Deloitte Consulting revealed that 90% of respondents completely agree that the cloud combined with AI, IoT and analytics serve as “force multipliers” for their digital strategy**.

"At Aeras Intel, we are passionate in accelerating IoT technology implementations in both medical device innovations and group practice operations; the benefits of IoT and new economics are easier to understand and realize when everyone is able to interact with a standardized ecosystem," said Neil McCaffrey, Chief of Innovation. "Our mission is to rapidly grow this ecosystem – starting today - to transform healthcare through faster adoption of streamlined procedures and reduced labor burden for maintaining critical equipment in a scaled practice."

Aeras Intel boasts an exceptional team of industry professionals with diverse expertise. Through their learnings, Aeras Intel is dedicated to helping businesses achieve their goals. By leveraging their knowledge and refining the process, the company delivers a seamless integration of IoT technology into the healthcare landscape.

"We invite healthcare organizations and device manufacturers to join us in this transformative journey," said Daniel Martin, Lead Systems Architect. "With Aeras Intel as your partner, you can unlock the immense potential of connected healthcare, revolutionize your operations, and achieve unprecedented success."

For further information or to explore how Aeras Intel can help your organization embrace the power of IoT in the healthcare industry, please visit www.aerasintel.com where you can connect with the company and schedule a brief, 30-minute exploratory call. Follow the leader and set the tone.

About Aeras Intel:

Aeras Intel is a MedTech consulting company in the primary business of connecting devices in a singular cloud-based ecosystem by leveraging IoT technology solutions. The company works with product manufacturers and group practice organizations in the healthcare sector.

* https://www.criticalmanufacturing.com/blog/why-are-medtech-manufacturers-looking-for-cloud-based-solutions/

**https://www.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/consulting/articles/cloud-strategy-innovation-survey-report.html

Data shows that VideaAI-assisted clinical diagnosis brought more patients to “yes”

Lumio Dental announced today that it has selected VideaHealth, the leading dental AI platform trusted by the most dental clinicians in the U.S., to improve its patient experience while increasing treatment production. Lumio Dental first deployed VideaHealth’s VideaAI in mid-2022 alongside several other dental AI solutions. After seeing outperforming results in terms of adoption, treatment acceptance, ROI and dental clinician feedback, the organization decided to expand the rollout of VideaAI to all of its relevant practices by July 2023.

“After analyzing multiple dental AI solutions, we realized that VideaHealth’s technology could be a game-changer. Our clinical team loves the technology, and VideaHealth’s team had the customer success model to enable true change management in our practices and deliver clear, measurable ROI,” said Dr. Colby Broadbent, Lumio Dental Chief of Clinical Affairs. “Our clinical teams love working with the technology because it gives them greater, deeper insights into areas of potential decay, the technology is easily incorporated into our practices, and our patients appreciate the extra layer of trust that comes with dental AI-assisted recommendations." He added, "We also saw a huge confidence boost with our newly graduated doctors in their own diagnosis."

Results from the first several months of VideaAI usage include:

● Restorative production for crown treatments increased by 6%

● Fillings experienced grew by nearly 30%

● Over 20% growth in periodontal production

● Increased new doctor confidence in their own diagnoses

● Increased case acceptance

VideaAI’s dental AI platform includes FDA-cleared medical algorithms that help dental clinicians identify signs of potential carious lesions (cavities) and measure radiographic bone levels. An FDA study shows the AI X-ray image analysis tool improves diagnostic accuracy for 100% of dentists who use it, regardless of their experience level, helping dentists spot more than 30% more dental conditions, all while building patient relationships with compelling visual aids that increase treatment acceptance.

"It was never enough for us to just introduce the best dental AI solution to the market, but I knew that to make a real health impact, we also need to be great business partners," said Florian Hillen, CEO, VideaHealth. “When practices see real results, they're more likely to invest in dental AI, and patient care improves. It is a virtuous circle. Lumio Dental are great partners to have, and this is only the beginning of the dental AI revolution we will be seeing in the coming years; we are excited to have them as our partners."

The nationwide program is possible with support from Align Technology

More than 69 million people live in dental care health professional shortage areas, where on average only 31.75% of the population have their dental needs met. America’s ToothFairy, a nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing access to oral health care for children in underserved populations, is working to provide effective oral health education and prevention programs for communities that simply don’t have enough dental care providers.

“Dental disease is preventable, yet most oral health efforts focus on restorative care, rather than prevention,” said Jill Malmgren, executive director of America’s ToothFairy. “This creates a revolving door of drill, fill, and pull where children access services only when in severe pain or in need of invasive and expensive treatments.”

Through their Health Education Resources and Outreach (HERO) Program, America’s ToothFairy provides oral health educational materials and outreach kits that equip community volunteers, oral health advocates, and dental health professionals to teach children and their caregivers about the importance of a healthy smile and how to prevent dental diseases.

“Over the last three years we have developed new ways to empower oral health educators to share the information families need to practice healthy dental hygiene habits at home and reinforce the importance of routine dental exams,” Malmgren added.

During America’s ToothFairy’s 2023 fiscal year, which ended June 30th, the HERO Program provided:

• guides for volunteers to address oral health inequity in their own communities,

• downloadable educational materials that were used to reach nearly 600,000 children and caregivers,

• 142 ToothFairy 101® Community Education Kits for educators, public health workers, and other oral health advocates that can reach at least 250 children each year, and

• two sponsored awareness campaigns including educational materials that reached 190,000 people and social media kits that reached thousands more online.

“A healthy smile can have a tremendous impact throughout a child’s lifetime,” said Julie Paulsen, vice president of Corporate Social Responsibility at Align Technology and America’s ToothFairy Board Secretary. “Align Technology is proud of what we have accomplished together with America’s ToothFairy to help families in underserved communities learn how to prevent dental disease and break the cycle of poor oral health.”

An additional 75,500 kids received sponsored Smile Guardian education kits that included everything from printed activity booklets for kids and guides for parents to toothbrushes and toothpaste. The kits were distributed regionally to organizations that serve at-risk populations including food banks, afterschool programs, public libraries, school nurses, preschools, and daycares thanks to contributions from Delta Dental, MGE: Management Experts, Patterson Dental, Cranberry, and private dental offices.

“Education materials from America’s ToothFairy are amazing tools that make learning about oral health fun for the children and accessible for the caregivers,” said Tracey Carrillo Fecher, Chief Executive Officer at Sonrisas Dental Health, a nonprofit, safety net dental clinic located in San Mateo, California. “We distribute these education materials at community events, oral health presentations and in the oral health toolkits we give to every child who has contact with Sonrisas programming or clinical services.” Sonrisas is one the 57 clinics nationwide that received resources from America’s ToothFairy to expand the number of children who can receive dental services in the last year.