The camera’s live video and temporary image freezing functions are optimal features for a quick explanation to the patient. As such, Planmeca Somia helps dental professionals with patient communication and motivation, as well as treatment documentation. As the freezing/unfreezing and saving of images can also be done from the foot control, hands can be left free for positioning the camera. The macro mode allows for extremely close-up images, which can quickly be saved to the patient database in Planmeca Romexis. After selecting the patient in the Planmeca Romexis software, the hygienic cover is placed on the camera. The camera can be mounted on the dentist instrument console or on the assistant-side Flexy holder, whichever suits the user best. After use, the camera is cleaned by simply removing the hygienic cover and wiping the device with a soft cloth dampened with disinfectant.

Tags: camera, intraoral, Planmeca, somia

Next year marks the 25^th anniversary of the BOC, which is the biggest meeting on the orthodontic calendar. The conference will thus provide attendees with an opportunity to look back over the event’s past, as well as forward to the future of orthodontics. Among the highlights of the 2019 BOC will be an OrthoTED session, a series of 15-minute presentations inspired by the wildly popular online TED Talks. This format debuted at this year’s conference and received overwhelmingly positive feedback. [bannercontainerslideinbanner id="202226"] A wide variety of sessions at the 2019 BOC are scheduled to take place, ranging from presentations for recently qualified dental professionals considering a career in orthodontics through to a private practice session for practitioners who want to build a private revenue source. The American academic and orthodontist Prof. Greg Huang, Chair of the Department of Orthodontics at the University of Washington, will deliver the prestigious Northcroft Memorial Lecture. Dr David Waring, Chairman of the BOC, said: “The choice of the Northcroft lecturer is hugely important and I feel very privileged that Professor Huang has agreed to join us in Glasgow. He has been involved with numerous National Institute of Health-funded research projects and he has published widely within the orthodontic literature and also as co-editor in evidence-based orthodontics textbooks.” Regular updates regarding the 2019 BOC will be sent out by the conference’s organising committee. Those who are interested can sign up for these updates or become a member of the British Orthodontic Society here.

Tags: british dental industry, dental conference, orthodontics

In the study, 56 patients with obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) were fitted with a custom mandibular advancement splint (oral appliance therapy) and had their midsagittal MM tracked. Patients were evaluated at the end of the titration procedure. During the titration procedure, different degrees of advancement are trialled up and down to find the single best amount to control apnoea events for the particular patient. Lead investigator Dr Jean-Benoît Martinot, from the Sleep Laboratory at the Sainte-Elisabeth site of the UCLouvain Namur teaching hospital, explained that the novelty of the study was tracking sleep MM in order to assess the effectiveness of oral appliance therapy (OAT). “Our study suggested for the first time that MM monitoring represents a powerful tool for assessing the efficacy of OAT,” he continued. According to the study’s results, by the end of titration, all indications of OSA had decreased compared with the initial baseline. Overall, patients also showed a reduction of vertical respiratory MM and sleep respiratory effort, as well as a dramatic decrease in obstructive hypopnoea. Scores from the apnoea–hypopnoea index and oxygen desaturation index also dropped, and the researchers found that MM monitoring also helped reveal the presence of central apnoeas. With new technology on the horizon, the researchers believe that MM monitoring could potentially represent a cost-effective and easy-to-implement tool for sleep clinics to use when titrating oral appliances. “MM monitoring during sleep is practical and informative for measuring indices of residual respiratory events when OSA is treated by oral appliances,” commented Martinot. The study, titled “Mandibular movement analysis to assess efficacy of oral appliance therapy in OSA”, was published online on 6 November 2018 in Chest ahead of inclusion in an issue.

Tags: apnoea, dental, devices, sleep

In May 2018, Majid Rahebi was charged by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) with 44 counts of falsely representing himself as a registered dentist and 31 counts of performing a restricted dental act. The allegations related to treatments performed between November 2017 and February 2018. AHPRA confirmed that Rahebi, although registered as a dental technician in Iran, holds no formal dental practice qualifications and had never been licensed as a dentist or any other health practitioner in Australia. Besides performing dental treatments, he administered anaesthetics, despite not having the authority to do so, according to AHPRA. In late October, Rahebi pleaded guilty to all charges. While the offences do not carry any jail time, he is required to pay over A$60,000 (€38,500) in fines. In an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, AHPRA CEO Martin Fletcher said that the matter was an “extreme example” of unregistered practice. “To represent that you are a registered dental practitioner, operate a business that supports that lie and carry out restricted dental acts that may endanger the public, is not behaviour that goes unchecked,” commented Fletcher on the agency’s response.

Tags: after, Bogus, canal, convicted, dentist, licence, performing, root, therapy, without

The development of the V3 implant focused on the design of the conical connection and the titanium grade of all components, providing more bone where it matters most. The V3 has a unique triangular neck design, resulting in minimal cortical bone compression, though ensuring excellent primary stability. This triangular shape also results in narrow chambers around the implant, allowing blood pooling and blood clot formation, thereby maintaining crestal bone vitality and enabling new bone growth. Placing the implant slightly sub-crestal even enhances more bone growth in these critical crestal bone areas. Sub-crestal placement, however, requires a very tight connection between implant and abutment, protecting the crestal bone from bacterial infiltration or micro-movement of the abutment.