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Dentistry Online presents the latest abstracts published examining the factors contributing to dental implant fractures.

Analysis of the causes of dental implant fracture: A retrospective clinical study

Stoichkov B, Kirov D (2018) Quintessence Int 49(4): 279-86

Objective

Fracture of osseointegrated dental implants is the most severe mechanical complication. The aim of the present study was to analyse possible causative factors for implant body fracture.

Method and materials

One hundred and one patients with 218 fitted implants and a follow-up period of three to 10 years were studied.

Factors associated with biomechanical and physiologic overloading such as parafunctional activity (eg, bruxism), occlusion, and cantilevers, and factors related to the planning of the dental prosthesis, available bone volume, implant area, implant diameter, number of implants, and their inclination were tracked.

The impact of their effect was analysed using the Bonferroni-corrected post-hoc Mann-Whitney test for each group.

Results

The incidence of dental implant … Read the rest

Neil Hillyard looks at how social media can be used to endorse, highlight and promote your practice to potential patients.

The use of social media continues to grow strongly. An estimated 42 million people in the UK spend an average of around two hours each day creating and engaging with content.

Using social media to promote orthodontic treatment and to engage with patients is steadily increasing. The majority of practices are cautiously exploring how digital marketing can help to grow their practice.

Others, seeing the potential these platforms provide, have been early adopters and have actively leveraged every opportunity to engage with new patients seeking orthodontic treatment.

In this article, we will look at how you can use social media to promote your practice and to more effectively engage with new and existing patients.

Which channel?

One of the frequent questions we are asked by practices is which social media … Read the rest

Melanie Pomphrett discusses what it was like to take home Highly Commended in the Best Hygienist category.

How does it feel to have won an award?

I definitely never thought I would win an award. So now that the shock has worn off I feel immensely grateful!

Winning an award has never been the motivation to do the best job I can but it has always been a goal and aspiration of mine. It is really nice to have your hard work recognised and celebrated.

Did you enjoy the awards evening?

Despite the nerves I definitely enjoyed the awards, the virtual set up was impressive and I really enjoyed watching all of the other categories.

Why did you choose to enter the awards?

I always knew I wanted to enter the awards at least once in my career, I suppose you could say it was something to tick of my … Read the rest

Sharon Bennett discusses patients’ growing fascination with lip treatments and considers how to offer them safely, effectively and appropriately.

What percentage of your business is focused on lips?

Of my HA injectables, I would say 65% of my business is lip fillers. However, there would definitely be people who would say 90% because lips may be their primary focus. Lips are a massive market and it’s growing every day.

Have you seen a rise in people wanting lip fillers? What do you think has fuelled this?

Yes, I would say we have absolutely seen a rise, and we’ve seen this rise over the last ten years.

Our demographic has widened considerably – now it’s all the way from 18 up to much more mature patients of 70.

What’s causing this in the younger patients is the presence of aesthetic treatment on social media and reality TV programmes. Shows such as … Read the rest

John Rhodes presents an interactive, practical and problem-solving solution in endodontics. This month, he looks at working length estimation.

The question of how to get reliable results from an apex locator is often posed to me. Whether it is necessary to take a diagnostic radiograph when using one. In this problem-solving, interactive article I will be looking at how to estimate working length. Also, how to use an apex locator predictably and provide some troubleshooting tips.

There are several ways of establishing the working length. Using various approaches helps to ensure the canals are instrumented, disinfected and obturated to the correct length.

Generally, preparation takes place as near to the apical constriction as possible. However, this landmark only exists in about 50% of roots and is not visible on a radiograph. Therefore the apex locator is an invaluable tool for locating the cemento-dentine junction (CDJ) and periodontal ligament. Modern apex … Read the rest