COLTENE hosts second North America Key Opinion Leader Symposium

Swiss dental specialist COLTENE hosted its second North America Key Opinion Leader Symposium in Montreal in September. The event brought together more than 60 dental experts from the United States, Canada and Europe, along with COLTENE’s North American sales and marketing leaders. Topics discussed included advancements in technology and trends in preservative dentistry for both endodontic and restorative practitioners.

The event kicked off Sept. 20 with a welcome reception at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth hotel in the heart of Montreal followed by a day focused on endodontic dentistry. The symposium came to a close Sept. 22 with a day dedicated to restorative dentistry as well as a special farewell dinner and show at Cirque Eloize.

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Endo Day: Digital and Bioactive Technologies in Endodontics

The theme for COLTENE’s Endo Day was Digital and Bioactive Technologies in Endodontics. Topics discussed were as follows:

• COLTENE’s own Dr. Barbara Mueller, business segment manager for endodontics, opened up Endo Day with a short presentation titled “A Short Guide through the NiTi Jungle," which explained the history and development of endodontic NiTi instruments and the major differences today between available alloys and their properties relevant to dental use.

• Dr. Rick Schwartz, an endodontist, national dental speaker and consultant from San Antonio, Texas, spoke on “Interdisciplinary Endodontics," which included a discussion of decision making and treatment planning in endodontics as well as the role of endodontics in multi-specialty care and how endodontic treatment can improve the outcomes in other areas of dentistry, including “pre-implant” endodontics.

• Dr. Josette Camilleri, a dental surgeon and professor at the School of Dentistry, College of Medical and Dental Sciences at the University of Birmingham, United Kingdom, presented “Environmental Interactions of Tricalcium Silicate-based Materials." Her presentation reviewed applications for hydraulic calcium silicate-based materials in dentistry and discussed the bioactivity and biocompatibility of materials as well as the  interactions and sequel of reactions in the clinical context of working with these materials.

• Dr. Adham Azim, division head and director of the endodontic post-graduate program at the University of Buffalo (UB) in New York and founder and chief editor of Endolit, served as chairman of COLTENE’s Endo Day. Dr. Azim presented “New Philosophies in Surgical Endodontic Treatment," which reviewed new considerations in planning and dealing with complicated surgical cases to restore the supporting structure and provide predictable outcomes for these cases.

• Dr. Joerd van der Meer, 3D technology expert at the Medical Centre and University Hospital of Groningen and Honorary Research Associate at the University of London Eastman Dental Institute, presented “3D Work-flows and Technology in Endodontics," which explored the potential of 3D technology and digital workflows in endodontics and what's needed to bring all of the technologies together.

• Following the presentations there was a panel discussion, which gave the key opinion leaders in the audience a chance to ask questions related to the presentations.

• The day wrapped up with a brief presentation by Dr. Sam Alborz, endodontist and national speaker from Knoxville, Tennessee, and Dr. Ric Gray, endodontist and national speaker from Midlothian, Virginia. Dr. Gray and Dr. Alborz also led a hands-on endodontic workshop featuring COLTENE’s HyFlex EDM file system.

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Resto Day: Adhesive Technology Innovations for Esthetic Dentistry

The theme for COLTENE’s Resto day was Adhesive Technology Innovations for Esthetic Dentistry. Topics discussed were as follows:

• COLTENE’s own Stefan Koch, business segment manager for restoration, opened up the day with a brief presentation on COLTENE’s restorative products, including an overview of CAD/CAM material classes.

• Dr. Lou Graham, dentist, speaker, consultant and founder of the Catapult Education Group, presented “Technology-Driven Diagnostics." His presentation explored new diagnostic protocols involving fluorescence, transillumination, CBCT and digital scanning. Dr. Graham also reviewed the rationale of why he believes that 2D radiographs are overused.

• Dr. John Comisi, Dentist, speaker and consultant, and president and CEO of Sleep Focused Solutions, presented “Hybridization vs. Biomineralization: An Evolution for Dental Restorations." He discussed the challenges encountered with dental bonding systems, the current definition of bioactivity and biomineralization and how these definitions may need to evolve.

• Dr. Sabiha Bunek, dentist, speaker and CEO and editor-in-chief of The Dental Advisor, presented “What’s Trending? Modern Adhesive Materials in Clinical Practice.”

• Dr. Dennis Fasbinder, clinical professor at the University of Michigan and a restorative materials expert, acted as COLTENE’s chairman for Resto Day. Dr. Fasbinder presented “Innovative Ceramic and Composite Restorations with CAD/CAM Technology." He explained in his presentation how adhesive developments in CAD/CAM technology are challenging current concepts for the application of partial coverage restorations compared to full crowns and how CAD/CAM technology redefined ceramic and composite materials and influenced their applications in clinical practice.

• Like endo day, there was a short panel discussion late in the afternoon. All of the speakers were able to answer questions and discuss and debate topics with the audience.

• The event wrapped up with a special farewell dinner at Cirque Eloize that included performances by some of the entertainment group’s acrobats and other entertainers such as jugglers and contortionists.

For more information on COLTENE, visit coltene.com.