Week in Review: Cuspies semifinal candidates | Tooth lesion misdiagnosis | Sequel to the surgeon general's report

Dear DrBicuspid Member,

It's the most wonderful time of the year! The last round of member voting is now open for the 2021 Cuspies awards. Our top story of the week introduced this year's stellar list of semifinal candidates.

The awards recognize the best and brightest in dentistry in 12 unique categories, including the most influential educators, best training programs, and best new products in 2021. You can vote now for the people, products, and events you'd like to see recognized as finalists.

Don't delay! Voting is only open until December 31, 2021.

Common tooth lesion misdiagnosis

Lesions appearing on radiographs with gum swelling are often misdiagnosed as lateral periodontal cysts instead of odontogenic keratocysts, according to a study published in the Journal of Endodontics.

While both lateral periodontal cysts and odontogenic keratocysts can present with similar clinical and imaging appearances, the rare but benign keratocyst is a locally aggressive developmental cyst with a high rate of recurrence.

Sequel to the surgeon general's report

Christmas came early, thanks to the U.S. National Institutes of Health and the National Institute of Dental Craniofacial Research. The duo released the long-awaited sequel to the U.S. surgeon general's 2000 report on oral health.

The report, titled "Oral Health in America: Advances and Challenges," gives a broad overview of the present and future of dental health in America. It also showcases the importance of oral health to overall health and well-being.

Three report authors highlighted some of the findings in a commentary published in the Lancet. Notably, untreated dental caries in permanent teeth have had no improvement since the 2000 surgeon general's report. Also, the disparity in tooth retention among the most affluent older adults and those living in poverty has nearly doubled in the past 20 years, reflecting widening inequality in the U.S.

Happy holidays!

Christmas and New Year's Eve are right around the corner. We asked some of DrBicuspid.com's contributors to share their favorite holiday memories. The answers ranged from heartwarming to a little bizarre, but all warmed our hearts.

DrBicuspid.com will not post new content next week so we can make our own holiday memories with our families. We wish you a wonderful holiday season and hope you have some time to relax. We will be back with new content in January.