For the majority of dentists, inferior alveolar nerve blocks (IANB) are the only way to achieve anesthesia for mandibular teeth. Periapical infiltrations are blocked by the dense buccal cortical bone, so injection into the pterygomandibular space is the only way to go. Yet, this method isn’t without its headaches. Inferior alveolar nerve blocks are only…
Oral ulcerations are a very common sight within the oral cavity. Luckily, due to the high reparative nature of the oral mucosa, many oral ulceration cases can be resolved with minimal or no intervention at all. However, diagnosis the ulceration is the easy part. Determining the cause is much tougher. Differential diagnosis Ulcerations can be…
International governing bodies of dentistry have actively recommended measuring patient blood pressure, since at least 1998. This practice has allowed uncovering undetected hypertension and possibly safeguarding against cardiac events during outpatient surgeries. This recommendation is logical, given that it’s estimated that 45% of the US adult population has hypertension. Based on the body of current…
Class V lesions and root decays are very common. However, the durability of the restorations of these lesions is not promising. Once restored, we can expect a loss of retention, marginal excess, secondary caries and tissue inflammation. These problems are directly related to challenges in isolation, cervical fluid control, finishing and polishing. To solve these…
Once you notice that the primary lateral incisors aren’t present in a child, you can almost be sure that the permanent later incisor is not going to erupt either. This is a situation that has to be dealt with often. Third molars, lateral incisors, and lower second premolars are the most commonly missing teeth –…
Standard diameter implant have become the gold standard, particularly because of the high success rate of the procedure. However, in cases where atrophic alveolar bone is present, predictable success rates can only be achieved with bone remodeling and augmentation. Logically, this increases the treatment time for the patient and comes with possible surgical complications. Things…
Medical emergencies in the dental office are a relatively rare event. However, due to the increased age of the general population, increase morbidities, and increased number of dental visits, medical emergencies are something we should expect. Controlling for the differences in training and regulations worldwide, how ready are dentists, if a medical emergency should arise?…
Clear aligners are simply the fastest growing component of the orthodontic market globally. Players in this market include the likes of 3M, Align Co. and ClearCorrect, with Invisalign currently dominating the market, hovering around 80% market share. More than 40 patents of Invisalign expired in October 2017, and many remaining patents expired by the end…
The emergence of zirconia has advanced dentistry. A crystalline ceramic, zirconia can give great esthetic qualities to the patient. In addition, with its high metal oxide concentration, zirconia shows great mechanical strength. However, bonding to zirconia is known to be particularly troublesome. Sand blasting with alumina, silanization, glass infiltration and zirconia primers have all emerged…
CAD/CAM technologies have been around since the 1950s. CAD/CAM’s introduction into dentistry came in 1987, when CEREC was first launched. Years later and many improvements to the foundational CAD/CAM technology, we are still seeing a debate between conventional impressions and digital impressions. To settle this debate many studies have been done to compare the accuracy,…