Today's Dental News

The long-debated subject of the safety of mercury fillings has resurfaced in several areas in the United States and the US Food and Drug Administration is now conducting further investigations into amalgam fillings.

Mercury fillings have been used for hundreds of years. However, they are becoming less common, as an increasing number of people choose to have natural-looking, tooth-colored fillings made of composite materials and ceramics.

For many years, concerns over the safety of metal amalgam fillings have been raised, with many people suggesting that the fillings contribute to a range of health problems and harm the environment, once they have been taken out.

Read more: Mercury Debate Resurfaces in the United States

Dentists in southern India performed root canal surgery on a giant scale to rid a 27-year-old elephant of chronic tusk ache, officials said.

A three-member team of dentists helped by a veterinary surgeon carried out the two-and-a-half-hour operation on the male pachyderm, which developed a cavity in one of its tusks, they said.

The operation took place in early November after the owner of the pet elephant brought the animal for an examination of the infection that had damaged the tusk.

“We decided to use the traditional root canal process as a remedy,” dentist Sunil Kumar said.

Read more: Elephant Gets Root Canal

A new approach to anchor teeth back in the jaw using stem cells has been developed and successfully tested in the laboratory for the first time by researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

The new strategy represents a potential major advance in the battle against gum disease, a serious infection that eventually leads to tooth loss. About 80 percent of US adults suffer from gum disease, according to the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research.

Researchers in UIC’s Brodie Laboratory for Craniofacial Genetics used stem cells obtained from the periodontal ligament of molars extracted from mice, expanded them in an incubator, and then seeded them on barren rat molars. The stem cell-treated molars were reinserted into the tooth sockets of rats.

Read more: Toothpaste Chemical Linked to Brain Damage in Unborn Babies

Dentistry Today's 2011 SWEEPSTAKES!!!

Enter to Win a FREE iPad from November 28th until February 28th, 2011.

If you happen to be in New York attending The 2010 Greater New York Dental Meeting stop by our booth for your chance to Win a FREE iPad.

If you cannot make the GNYDM you can follow our LIVE BLOG at http://www.dentistrytoday.com/live-blog and still be able to enter the sweepstakes by going to http://www.dentistrytoday.com/ipad.

We’ll keep you updated on all of the new products being released and everything else going on with manufacturers throughout the dental profession. We’ll also let you know who’s speaking about what topics. Any important news or announcements will be part of the blog, as well. We’ll make it as if you’re there on the exhibit floor. All you have to do is visithttp://www.dentistrytoday.com/live-blog on Monday and Tuesday.

Read more: Dentistry Today's 2011 SWEEPSTAKES!!!