Business & Industry Insider: Top 10 DSOs: The largest companies keep growing

Dear Business & Industry Insider,

It's time to once again update our list of the top 10 largest dental service organizations (DSOs) in the U.S. Heartland Dental continued to hold first place in this year's edition. You can see the full list in our Insider Exclusive.

In other big DSO news, Western Dental, one of the companies that made our top DSOs list, will nearly double its number of supported practices through an acquisition of Mid-Atlantic Dental Partners. When the deal closes, Western Dental will be coast to coast, with 571 offices extending from California to Delaware, the company said.

Also new in the Business & Industry Community, I took a look at some of the new, unconventional products showcased at the California Dental Association meeting that took place in Anaheim, CA, earlier this month. One product that caught my eye was a robot that allows an assistant in the Philippines to provide live virtual help to patients visiting dentists in the U.S.

Is it time to change antibiotic prophylaxis guidance? Mounting evidence suggests that might be the case. A systematic review in May concluded that it's unclear whether prophylactic antibiotics can help prevent bacterial endocarditis in at-risk patients. The review came on the heels of a landmark study in January that reported no association between late prosthetic joint infection and invasive dental procedures in nearly 8,500 patients.

The new research prompted a group of dentists and physicians to call for the ADA and American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons to reevaluate the use of antibiotic prophylaxis for patients with prosthetic joints. The group argued that the need to rethink the guidelines is especially critical for antibiotic stewardship.

Last but not least, the ADA was hit by a cyberattack that caused technical difficulties, including disrupting its email, phone, online chat, and membership software systems. A ransomware crew took responsibility for the attack and claimed to have leaked member data, according to a news story. In the wake of the attack, one cybersecurity expert shared what ADA members should do and offered 10 best cybersecurity practices for businesses of all kinds.