Dear DrBicuspid Member,
Maine legislators may have struck down proposed legislation that would have created a new category of dental care provider -- the dental hygiene therapist -- but North Dakota is moving forward with a study to assess the use of midlevel providers (MLPs) to address the state's access-to-care issues, which some blame on a shortage of dentists.
However, the North Dakota Dental Association contends that there are other factors at play and that introducing a new care provider model is not the answer. Read more.
Meanwhile, over in the Restoratives Community, there has been little published data about the effects of sedation on children once they leave a dental practice, according to researchers from the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center School of Dentistry. Sedatives often last longer than the duration of the dental appointment, which means the trip home has the potential to be hazardous. Click here to read their recommendations for ensuring pediatric patients' safety following sedation.
Finally, a study presented this year at the International Association for Dental Research meeting demonstrated that when it comes to antimicrobial efficacy, not all toothbrush coatings are created equal. Read more in this latest Hygiene Community feature.
