Dear DrBicuspid Member,
The American Association of Endodontists (AAE) announced its support for vital pulp therapy as a treatment option for adults with fully formed roots. Our top story of the week details what you need to know about the new position statement.
Previously, the AAE advised reserving vital pulp therapy for adults with tooth roots that have not fully formed. The position statement focuses on the use of vital pulp therapy for adult teeth with injured pulps and fully formed roots. It also addresses biomaterials and permanent materials for these patients.
Dental professional antibody study
A new study revealed the extent to which dental professionals were exposed to the novel coronavirus in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. In June 2020, 16% of dental professionals in the U.K. had antibodies against the virus. That was nearly three times higher than in the general population.
The trend seems related to patient exposure, as dental receptionists with no direct patient contact had levels of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies similar to those in the general population. The researchers also looked at how well natural antibodies protected against reinfection and the effect of COVID-19 vaccines.
Hidden inflammatory disease
A 38-year-old man was diagnosed with a rare chronic inflammatory disease after presenting to the periodontics department with severely enlarged gums. The man had been experiencing gingival enlargement, loose teeth, and tooth loss, and he had plaque and debris covering nearly every tooth.
After an abnormal blood test, the team took 10 gingival samples and ordered imaging. The patient was later diagnosed with immunoglobulin G4-related periodontitis, a rare and not-well-understood disease.
Why is lidocaine so popular?
The latest episode of Dental Dose is live, and it's all about the golden child of dentistry: lidocaine. Pharmacologist Tom Viola, RPh, shares how the history and reliability of the anesthetic have contributed to its unrivaled popularity in the dental industry. He also discusses some of the reasons you might want to reach for another anesthetic agent.
No more doom scrolling
Last but not least, there may be some benefit to trading doom scrolling on Twitter for brushing up on dental education. A recent systematic review found that Twitter's open access platform, limited advertisements, and searchability using hashtags make it an ideal tool for dental students and dental education.
And what better way to get 280 characters worth of dental information than by following DrBicuspid.com on Twitter? If that's not your cup of tea, we're also on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
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