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Dentistry news

Dentistry

Countries agree to end mercury tooth fillings by 2034

Countries agreed Friday to phase out the use of mercury-based dental amalgams in tooth fillings by 2034, in a move that will change dentistry around the world.

Neuroscience

Over-the-counter painkillers match or surpass opioids for dental surgery in all adults, analysis confirms

Over-the-counter pain medications work as well or better than opioids after wisdom tooth extraction for both men and women, according to a Rutgers Health-led follow-up to a landmark paper on comparative pain relief.

Dentistry

Countries call for mercury dental fillings ban by 2030

Multiple countries including the United States called Monday for a worldwide ban on mercury-based dental amalgams by 2030, at a meeting of signatories to a treaty on limiting the toxic metal.

Medical research

Scientists find cells that know when, where and how to grow teeth

Tooth development is a dynamic process that involves the stages of the bud, the cap, and the bell, followed by root development and subsequent tooth formation. Processes such as the bud-to-cap transition are mediated by epithelial-mesenchymal ...

Medications

Antidepressants show promise for alleviating jaw pain

Certain antidepressants can help alleviate chronic jaw pain caused by temporomandibular disorders (TMDs), according to a research review by a team of researchers with expertise in dentistry and pharmacy published in the Journal ...

Dentistry

AI-assisted growth prediction advances orthodontics

Orthodontic treatment is most effective when timed to coincide with a child's growth peak. Traditionally, clinicians estimate growth by examining X-ray images of the cervical vertebrae—the neck bones visible in routine ...

Autism spectrum disorders

Why many children with autism have oral health problems

The World Health Organisation estimates that one in 160 children around the world has an autism spectrum disorder. Autism is a condition related to the development of the brain and is usually noticeable by the time a child ...

Dentistry

New 'tooth-on-a-chip' could lead to more personalized dentistry

A so-called "tooth-on-a-chip" could one day enable more personalized dentistry, giving dentists the ability to identify dental filling materials that work better and last longer based on a patient's own teeth and oral microbiome.

Dentistry

New study explores the link between obesity and gum disease

Obesity and gum (periodontal) disease are among the most common non-communicable diseases in the United States—and studies show these chronic conditions may be related. This new study explores the effect of obesity on non-surgical ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes

Periodontal disease: Patent for new treatment method

New biodegradable rods promise to provide better treatment for periodontal disease. Researchers from the Institute of Pharmacy at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU) have re-combined an already approved active ...

Dentistry

Behavioral sciences in the promotion of oral health

2019 marks the Centennial of the Journal of Dental Research (JDR). Over the last century the JDR has been dedicated to the dissemination of new knowledge and information on all sciences relevant to dentistry and to the oral ...

Dentistry

Oral health for older adults

Older adults are at an especially high risk for mouth and tooth infections and the complications that can come with these problems. Losing teeth, which is mainly caused by infection, not only leads to changes in our appearance ...

Dentistry

Evolution of aesthetic dentistry

2019 marks the Centennial of the Journal of Dental Research (JDR). Over the last century the JDR has been dedicated to the dissemination of new knowledge and information on all sciences relevant to dentistry and to the oral ...

Dentistry

Cognitive decline and periodontitis

Cognitive functioning and dementia can dramatically affect the conditions for oral health. A new dissertation by researcher Helena Nilsson reveals after she participated in a unique global study on aging.

Dentistry

Special sensory cells in the gums protect against periodontitis

Newly discovered chemical-sensing cells in the gums protect the mouth by standing guard against infections that damage soft tissue and destroy the bone that supports the teeth, report researchers from the Monell Chemical ...

Health

The toll dental disease can take

In 2007, a 12-year-old boy from Maryland died after an infection from an untreated dental abscess spread to his brain. His mother, homeless and dependent on Medicaid, had been unable to find a dentist to treat her children's ...

Dentistry

New study questions value of fluoride varnish

Fluoride varnish has become a popular anti-cavity treatment for children, and it isn't hard to see why. It's relatively easy to apply, and not just for dentists or dental hygienists. Pediatricians can do it as well, with ...

Dentistry

How pipeline programs can increase diversity in dentistry

The field of dentistry has a diversity problem. Despite calls for a more diverse workforce, only 15.2 percent of dental school applicants in 2016 were underrepresented minorities, according to the American Dental Education ...