Lab Processing Times

The braces are finally coming off! Excitement is high…until you explain that your pediatric/adolescent patient will still have to wear some form of final retention device to maintain the tooth straightening that has been accomplished. As soon as those braces come off, teeth can begin a slow migration back to their old positions. A final retainer helps keep the teeth in place so they stay in their new positions.

The good news? Your patient will likely get to pick and personalize from many different custom retainer colors and designs. What about a pearl green retainer, a flower rose retainer, zebra stripes or even a rainbow retainer? When your patient chooses a unique retainer color or design, it may help them remember to wear it…and that’s…

TAP® system provides a comprehensive therapy that yields both high clinical success as well as outstanding reports of patient satisfaction. Clinical Studies Results from clinical studies provide the best information to help the dentist choose an appliance. Studies show that a good appliance will provide excellent treatment results, maintains low morbidity rate, and still remain a viable economical alternative to other treatment options.

Recent articles in the medical and dental literature have made it clear that, as a dentist, you can provide a role in the treatment of both Snoring and Obstructive Sleep Apnea through the use of oral appliances. In fact, in response to an overwhelming demand,…

If you think back, you may be able to remember what it felt like to wake up after a long night of deep, uninterrupted sleep. You felt refreshed, invigorated, and motivated. Your mind was clear and sharp, and you could easily navigate all the different twists and turns your job threw at you.

If you are one of the estimated 18 million Americans who suffer from sleep apnea, it may have been a long, long time since you woke up feeling refreshed.

Oxygen-debt fatigue and exhaustion makes every aspect of life hard, but it can definitely affect your job performance. You just can’t be as productive when you can barely keep your eyes open, and forget about creative solutions to difficult challenges when your mind is mired in fog.

If you want to be…

SML Global promotes education about the use of dental appliances.  This is volume one of a two volume learning process.

This practical guide to effective treatment with orthodontic and orthopedic appliances features step-by-step chair-side procedural photography -- including appliance selection and adjustment – and provides information on ensuring healthy TMJ and achieving long-term stability. Emphasis: concrete advice for immediate application in the active practice.

Click to Buy the Book -  THE CLINICAL MANAGEMENT OF BASIC MAXILLOFACIAL…

You may think that your smile is fine…or fixed -- especially if you had braces as a kid. But then why does it seem like your teeth are still changing over the years? Perhaps one tooth is being crowded out. Maybe one is tilting forward more and more. The truth is, your teeth are always shifting, even as an adult.

One of the primary reasons is simply lifestyle habits. If you like to chew on the end of pens or are prone to grinding your teeth at night, the long-term pressure on your teeth can slowly cause them to shift. Another common cause is gum disease, which can weaken the bone that holds your teeth in place. What’s more, if you lose a tooth, the rest of the teeth in your mouth will likely shift in reaction to the empty space.…

We all know that dentists specialize in helping you keep your teeth healthy and beautiful, but what about your lips? If you tend to gnaw on your lips when you are nervous, anxious, or bored, then your lips are probably in need of some help! A lip biting habit can leave lips full of painful sores and scabs, not to mention unpleasant to look at and especially to kiss!If you want your lips to be healthy, beautiful, and oh-so-kissable, it’s time to get rid of that lip biting habit. Your dentist can help! He or she can actually work with a third-party dental lab, like SML Global to manufacture a personalized dental appliance that fits over your teeth and makes it impossible for you to chew or bite on your lips. The device looks a little…

The American Dental Association’s Health Policy Institute (HPI) released an analysis that showed dental care use by adults has not improved even with the enactment of the Affordable Care Act.

According to the analysis, the top two reasons adults they surveyed don’t intend to see a dentist in the next 12 months is because of the cost and they don’t see the need for preventative care. Respondents to the HPI survey also cited lack of transportation, anxiety, and difficulty finding a dentist who will take Medicaid payments as reasons for foregoing a checkup.

The HPI suggests several additional reasons for low dental compliance, including the fact that the Affordable Care Act does not require…

As a dentist, you are well versed in the art of asking your patients how often they brush and floss. You’re also probably pretty good at making small talk to get through longer appointments and procedures.

You might want to add a few new questions to your dental conversations. Though these questions may be a little awkward, they can help you provide help to your patients who need it.

Ask your patients if they snore. Ask if their partner complains about their snoring. Ask if they sleep soundly through the night or are experiencing unusual fatigue in the mornings.

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Arch wires are a critical tool for orthodontists. The type of wire you choose for your patient can directly determine how quickly your intervention progresses -- as well as the quality of the ultimate outcome.

There are many different arch wires on the market, each ideal for a different situation. Do you have a wide variety to choose from at your practice? If not, you might not be giving your patients the very best service possible.

Because arch wires come in a variety of sizes (from .014 mm to .022), shapes (tapered, square, ovoid) and materials (like stainless steel or activated nickel titanium) variety and choice are key.

Provide your patients with the most tailored interventions possible. Take a moment to take a look at the large selection of arch wires…

Isn’t it strange how one sibling can have perfectly spaced teeth while the other sibling has crooked and crowded teeth? Why does this happen? Well, in some cases, a child’s mouth simply doesn’t grow big enough to accommodate all of their teeth. As a result, the teeth push together, overlap, and become crooked.

Braces can’t fix this problem, at least not right away. First, a dentist must actually make the child’s jaw bigger. A dentist does this by using a special device, known as a palatal expander or a Hyrax expander. The Hyrax expander comes with two arms that push gently and steadily on either side of the maxilla (the upper jaw). Each week, the dentist (or the patient if he/she is old enough) turns a screw to…