ADA to cut library services; digital dentistry comes of age

Dear DrBicuspid Member,

October 23 was a gloomy day at the ADA library in Chicago.

That's because the ADA House of Delegates voted to approve a proposal to dramatically scale back services provided by the library, including eliminating walk-in services and loaning books and materials, according to ADA sources. The cutbacks will also extend to several library employees.

Click here to read how the changes are expected to impact dental researchers across the country.

In other ADA Annual Session news, our new Future of Dentistry series takes a look at the role "high tech" played at this year's meeting, from the rise of digital impressioning and optical caries detection to the Pride Institute's third annual Best of Class technology awards. Is it time to move your practice into the digital age? Read more, including tips from technology experts on how to help your team and your patients embrace the transition.

Another session at the ADA meeting focused on the growing emphasis on "going green" in the dental office and the importance of keeping patient safety a priority when making new, environmentally friendly product choices.

Meanwhile, in Restoratives Community news, a new study in Anesthesia Progress comparing the effectiveness of propofol-remifentanil and propofol-ketamine combinations for the removal of all four third molars found that the latter is a less-than-perfect option, primarily due to recovery times.

Finally, in our popular Leaders in Dentistry series, we spoke with James E. Metz, DDS, who in 2004, lost 100 pounds and alleviated his ongoing issues with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). He has since made detecting and treating OSA his life's mission, having treated some 4,000 sleep disorder patients, authored numerous articles on OSA, and given more than 1,000 presentations on the condition and how dentists can help patients overcome it.