What are implant retained dentures or a locator denture? Implant retained dentures are a type of overdenture that you can take in and out to clean and attaches to dental implants. It differs from the bar overdenture in that it gets support from tissue and typically the implants attach directly to the denture instead of […]
The bifurcated inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) Bifurcation of the inferior alveolar nerve is a common anatomical variance but can be difficult to detect. How common is a bifurcated IAN? It most likely occurs between 13-37%, which you can find in Yoon Gen Dent 2018. This is a wide range and there is almost certainly going […]
ADA dental code changes for 2020 Information about new ADA code changes for 2020. 2019 codes are in another post. What are the changes this year? A lot of the changes have to do with re-cementing space maintainers or orthodontic appliances and could have been left the same. Many deal with titanium crowns, which I […]
Decompression of a dental abscess Decompression of a dental abscess is something that is rare but beneficial with large lesions. Endodontists and oral surgeons are probably the main too specialists with training in this area. Steps for decompression of a dental abscess The steps for decompression depend to some degree on where it is in […]
What causes initial crestal bone loss from implant surgery? Crestal bone loss from an implant surgery is inevitable. Some of the bone will die from the trauma of the surgery. Where and how much is not totally in our control, but we can to some extent predict high risk areas. Note the crestal bone loss […]
Air abrasion use in dentistry Air abrasion use in dentistry is a nice tool with various applications from hygiene, clinical, and laboratory. What are the different materials in use for air abrasion? The material choice decides what the goal of air abrasion is. The more coarse material is the more it cuts into tooth structure. […]
Retrograde peri-implantitis of dental implants Retrograde peri-implantitis, or implant periapical lesion, is a radiolucent lesion at the apical portion of a dental implant. Typically one will develop in the first few months post insertion. What is the cause of retrograde peri-implantitis? The cause is bone death and or infection and is multi-factorial. We believe this is […]
Dental implant checklist and other dental procedural checklists Dental implant checklists are an important step to help ensure simple mistakes are made less frequently. Many of the small mistakes that can occur in the dental field are far from life threatening, but we need to take our our profession seriously. Why the need for an […]
Conservative endodontic access (Ninja access) Conservative endodontic access or ninja access is basically an access to complete a root canal that is very small. My bias is that most root canals we see fail do so from infection and likely ineffective cleansing. To limit ones ability to effectively clean out the inside to reduce the […]
Dental art, drawing, and artwork that we enjoy Really like William J O’Brien’s ceramics and paintings.
What is a dental pulp cap procedure? Dental pulp cap is the partial removal of the dental pulpal tissue and placement of a restorative material over the top of the exposure. Historically there are several pulp capping materials but today MTA and Biodentine dominate the direct pulp cap research Calcium hydroxide was traditionally the product […]
Dental pins, or dentin pins, for crowns and fillings Dental pin use is way down with the widespread use of composite bonding. However, there is still a place that they can be useful. Dental pins for crowns This is probably the most common use today for dental pins. There are times when a tooth has […]
Do you have a yellow spot on your tooth? A yellow spot on your tooth is definitely something that a dentist can fix for you. What is the yellow spot? If it has always been there then there is a good chance it is enamel hypominerlization. However, if the yellow stain is newer than it […]
What is a root amputation, root resection and a hemisection? Root amputation and root resection are synonyms for each other. Root resection and root hemisection are often found online together because the procedure itself is similar. However, the reason for using either treatment is very different. What’s a root resection or root amputation? A root […]
