Is there hope for U.S. oral healthcare? And, study IDs genetic ONJ risk factor

Dear DrBicuspid Member,

Electronic dental records, better payment mechanisms, and alternative types of dental care providers are among the ways the U.S. can improve its oral healthcare system, according to a new report authored by Dr. Paul Glassman of the University of Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry.

Click here to read more recommendations from the report, which was funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the DentaQuest Institute.

In other news, the incidence of oral human papillomavirus infection -- the primary cause of some oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas -- is on the rise among young men in the U.S., according to a study presented last week at the Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium in Phoenix. Read more.

And researchers at the Columbia University College of Dental Medicine have identified a genetic variation that raises the risk of developing osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ) in patients who take bisphosphonates, according to a new study in the Oncologist.

Meanwhile, over in the Restoratives Community, placing implants immediately after an extraction has gained favor in dentistry, but questions remain about expectations for success. How does the timing of the procedure affect stability? And does bone loss after an extraction affect the implant's life span? Click here to read what a recent systematic review found.

Finally, in Hygiene Community news, using the antibiotic ornidazole in conjunction with scaling and root planing achieves significantly better clinical results when treating moderate to advanced chronic periodontitis than periodontal treatment alone, according to a study in the Journal of Periodontology.