What do to when an employee embezzles from you
Embezzlement tends to be viewed as something that happens to other people, but the truth is that no industry is immune to this epidemic. Three of every 5 dentists will be victims of embezzlement during their years of practice. Personal insights about who embezzles, instructions about what to do, and cautions about what not to do were offered. (Source: Dental Abstracts)
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: The Front Office Source Type: research
Turning prospects into patients
Google searches are an important part of the process of making a connection between a prospective patient and the dental practice. However, more than a fancy website is required to make the dental website among the first batch of results of a search. A comprehensive approach to digital marketing will not just attract prospects but nurture them until they become patients. Strategies to attract and convert prospects into patients were outlined. (Source: Dental Abstracts)
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: The Front Office Source Type: research
Sixth stage of dental practice growth
Dental service organizations (DSOs) are becoming more common in dentistry and control a larger part of the dental market than in the past. The pathway to growth from a solo practice to a complex of more than 40 offices follows specific stages where challenges need to be overcome to move on to the next stage. The focus is now on Stage 6. (Source: Dental Abstracts)
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: The Front Office Source Type: research
Subscription plan rather than insurance
Persons who have dental insurance are more than 2 ½ times more likely to visit the dentist than those without coverage. With the aging population, more people will be without dental insurance, with adults over age 65 years having the lowest rates of dental coverage. An option is private-pay insurance plans, but in almost 70% of cases, the insuranc e premium and copays are higher than the actual market price of the dental care received over the course of a year. Although patients like the monthly payment installments that these plans offer, the fact that the outlay of money is greater than the cost of services rendered is ...
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: The Front Office Source Type: research
Managing attrition
Attrition, which refers to the loss of tooth structure caused by contact between teeth, is usually seen occlusally, but can also occur interproximally. The typical presentation is marked wear facets coupled with complimentary wear facets in the upper and lower dentition. Many patients with this problem are bruxers. Erosion can also be seen with attrition or abrasion and is particularly common in patients who eat significant numbers of oranges or other acidic foods. The diagnosis, etiology and contributing factors, and clinical management and restoration of teeth with attrition were updated. (Source: Dental Abstracts)
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: Hands On Source Type: research
Erosion related to systemic disorders
In addition to its relationship to oral disorders, erosive tooth wear (ETW) should be seen as a possible symptom of serious medical conditions. Many of the medical conditions related to ETW have the potential to cause the patient's death. The relationship between ETW and the most common relevant systemic diseases, which include gastroesophageal disorders, eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, rumination, and alcoholism, was explored, with particular attention to the role of the dental office in addressing the situation. (Source: Dental Abstracts)
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: Hands On Source Type: research
Algorithm to analyze cardiac risk
The risk of suffering a cardiac event related to invasive dental treatment is higher in the first 4 weeks after the treatment compared to other time periods. For patients who have cardiac disease, an additional risk for major cardiac events or stroke exists. To judge the risk for such cardiac responses, dentists would benefit from having a method of identifying patients with heart disease whose condition puts them at higher cardiac risk levels. Several factors contribute to the higher risk for cardiac problems, including the widespread occurrence of ischemic heart disease, heart failure, and related comorbidities in dental...
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: Hands On Source Type: research
New hypertension guidelines
The American Heart Association (AHA) released changes to the definition and classification of hypertension developed by the American College of Cardiology (ACC), the AHA, and 9 other health professional organizations in November 2017. These guidelines are based on more than 900 published studies and update the 2003 Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure. The major changes made and their relevance to dental professionals were outlined. (Source: Dental Abstracts)
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: Hands On Source Type: research
Deep caries lesions approaches
Conventionally, caries lesions are treated with complete removal of decayed tissue, followed by tooth restoration. For deep lesions, the risk of pulp exposure is increased, which can require endodontic treatment. Conservative techniques of removing carious dentin have been developed to treat asymptomatic teeth with reversible pulp inflammation. The stepwise excavation (SW) approach involves complete excavation of the decayed areas in 2 steps. First, the carious dentin is removed, then 6 to 9 months later the cavity is reopened for final excavation and restoration. (Source: Dental Abstracts)
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: Hands On Source Type: research
Compromising dental records
The quality of record keeping in dentistry has not been studied extensively, but it is recognized as an important component for the delivery of safe, appropriate care. The development of the electronic dental record (EDR) arms dentists with functionality that allows them to manage patient information and administrative duties more quickly and comprehensively. Tools help to record a narrative, create templates, generate treatment plans, prepare patient advice sheets, and incorporate digital images in the record. (Source: Dental Abstracts)
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: Hands On Source Type: research
Chairside fabricated lithium silicate crowns
With more patients expecting esthetic as well as functional restorations, materials have been developed to help dentists meet these expectations. All-ceramic materials are often the selection made for crowns to avoid the chipping common with veneered metal-ceramics. When dentists add the ability to provide computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) chairside, lithium disilicate material is highly qualified for its ability to provide sufficient strength as well as esthetics. However, the long-term clinical performance of chairside generated monolithic lithium disilicate crowns has remained to be evaluated ...
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: Hands On Source Type: research
Oral health care in HIV-infected patients
At the end of 2013, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated 1.2 million people were living with HIV in the United States. The availability of antiretroviral therapy (ART) has made HIV a chronic, manageable illness, with a life expectancy among well-controlled patients comparable to that of persons without HIV. Despite the availability of ART and its ability to suppress the disease to undetectable levels, there are still obstacles to effective treatment and control of the epidemic. (Source: Dental Abstracts)
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: Hands On Source Type: research
Optimizing implant success
Although dental implants are a practical and sustainable tooth replacement option, their success, while at a high rate, is not guaranteed. Both local and systemic factors can adversely affect the survival of implants. Dental practitioners need to be aware of these factors and monitor or address them before implant failure develops. (Source: Dental Abstracts)
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: Hands On Source Type: research
Antibiotic coverage
The accepted practice in the past was to use antibiotics as surgical prophylaxis to accompany dental implant placement. However, this practice was developed before the problems of antibiotic resistance were known and when antimicrobial stewardship was not considered. Today, dentists and dental specialists must determine when to use antibiotics for implant placement procedures. After obtaining a thorough dental evaluation, patients should be given antibiotics based on a case-by-case evaluation. It is not unusual, however, for dentists to use a rule-based approach or treat antibiotics as an insurance against infection and us...
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: Hands On Source Type: research
Prescribing habits and alternatives
Many common dental conditions can be managed effectively without the prescription of opioid analgesics or antibiotics. Because of the abuse, misuse, and overdose potential for these agents, dental professionals and their medical colleagues need to use them judiciously. The current practices of dental professionals with regard to prescribing opioids and antibiotics, alternatives that could be used, and preventive actions dentists can take to limit the abuse potential with these agents were detailed. (Source: Dental Abstracts)
Source: Dental Abstracts - November 1, 2018 Category: Dentistry Tags: Hands On Source Type: research
