In This Issue:

  ADA Recap
  The Best Products at the ADA

As I have done in the past with other major dental meetings, this issue will be devoted to the sights and sounds of the ADA Meeting in San Francisco, CA last week. This was an unusual ADA for me. Typically, I spend all 3 days visiting the booths and seeing the newest products out there. This year, a large amount of my time was spent in the booth of Darby Dental, as they were kind enough to pay for the printing of my 2007 Tech Guide. Look for this book at their booth at all major dental meetings for the next year. In any event, while the time I had to cruise the floor was more limited, it didn’t seem to really matter, as there were very few new products of note. I’ve always been surprised that we don’t see more new products at the highest-attended meeting, but this seems to be typical. Most new products come out at the Chicago MidWinter Meeting, and a few at the Spring California Dental Meeting.

The Best Products at the ADA

Product of the Show

This one was kind of easy, as the criteria I used was to see which product had the most people crowded into their booth. The hands-down winner was the E4D, which was shown in the Schein booth. While I could have awarded this award to them the past few years, the product was never close to shipping and I took a wait-and-see approach. Well, the waiting is over. I was told that they have 100 units in production and have already oversold the mandatory training class, so expect to see these hit the street in November. You have to really sit down with one to get a feel for it, but they have some very unique features, such as the ability to superimpose the real teeth in the software rather than drawn teeth, and the ability to use the system like an iTero to take “impressions” and have the restorations created somewhere else. I wasn’t a huge fan of the tiny keyboard, but that’s a minor quibble.

In other highlights:

• Belmont was showing their ADR Digital Upgrade Kit. Many of the companies I’ve worked with in the past for pan conversions cannot handle the X-Caliber EX-1000, so this is a welcome addition to the field.
• Speaking of digital pans, Planmeca was given FDA approval last Friday night at the show for their newest digital pan, the ProOne. This appears to be targeting the lower end of the cost spectrum, although no word on whether this will be replacing the Proline XC.
• I continue to be impressed with the Sikka Dental Practice Optimizer. If you are setting your fees based on anything other than good data (and, your neighbor’s fees or raising you fee a set % each year doesn’t qualify), you owe it to yourself to get this program.
• Ivoclar was showing the newest addition to the diode laser line, the 3Watt. This is a really nice soft tissue laser from a company that has been doing this a long time.
• Claris had their USB intraoral camera, the i310D, on display, and I still say what I’ve been saying for years: this is the best USB camera out there, period.
• While Claris is the best USB portable cameras, best image quality still goes to the Imagin cameras, and they were showing their newest member of the family, the HotRod.
• A Digital pan/ceph I hadn’t seen before, the BelmaX CM from Belmont, was on display. You can also get this camera without the ceph arm.
• With the explosion of Cone Beam or 3-D imaging, it’s been my experience that the software has a long way to go. That’s why I continue to recommend Dolphin for managing these images.
• The PreViser system is one of the easiest and most comprehensive systems for evaluating a patient’s risk for periodontal disease, and they have made some exciting new changes to their software.
• My favorite digital x-ray company, XDR, was in full force and their booth was jammed as always. They had some excellent show specials and I continue to support small companies like this with great products and a commitment to customer service.
• TouchFree Computing had an interesting product, CleanKeys. It’s a glass keyboard that is surprisingly responsive to the touch. The glass allows you to completely wipe it down between patients, which is not something that any other keyboard can claim.
• While I still write for most of the dental journals, the online forums are where you’ll find the latest and greatest info. You should check out DentalCompare, which is becoming more popular every day.
• While I still have some hesitation about using Mac computers in dentistry, there’s little doubt that MacPractice is the cream of the crop. This program has made huge strides since I first saw it a few years ago (and they seem to have dropped the “DDS” after the program’s name).
• Sirona was showing their cone-beam system, the Galileos, with the new software. The software seems to be a major improvement over the past version.
• Gendex had their new x-ray head, the expert DC, on display. The previous version, the 765DC, did not have a great track record so I was glad to see that they have corrected the problems with a new system.
• I saw an interesting product called the Win Teleseminar Series. It seems to be a cross between practice management and personal growth to improve your life and practice.
• AFP was showing their latest 3-D system, the NewtomVG. Unlike their 3G which requires the patient to lie down and a large room, this is a stand-up unit about the size of most digital pans.
• Another cool product was the Third Eye. This is basically an intraoral camera that you attach to your patient light, thus freeing up your hands during an exam. They have a ton of recording options, such as recording exams to a DVD. Very slick.
• I saw the newest version of the Dental Rat, a hands-free footpedal for recording periodontal exams. The new unit is much smaller and offers a wireless option as well.
• Florida Probe had their newest version here as well. This is easily the finest system on the market for periodontal probing, and it now links to pretty much every practice management software.
• An apparent newcomer to the field of online dental CE was HDiQ Dental. The content isn’t great yet, but they seem to be adding more all of the time.
• A really cool “why didn’t I think of that?” product that I saw was the Magic Clamp. It was developed over in France and I’m not sure who will be selling it here, but it takes a standard rubber dam clamp and adds large side phalanges, which keeps the tongue and cheek out of the way. A very “high tech” low-tech product.
• There were a number of companies showing their cone beam systems all in one area. I still believe that the Picasso is a name you’ll be hearing more and more about over the next few years. The new system, the Master, will offer a sitdown option and larger field of view.
• Steve Seltzer was showing his latest version of the Technology Lighting Center, formally known as the Chair Potato. This is an excellent system and has the highest “wow factor” of any product that we routinely install for offices.
• Another cone beam system that I didn’t know much about (but, my friend Dr. Steve Buchanan, swears by them) is the J.Morita system, the 3D Accuitmoto. The images they had in their booth were outstanding.

Well, that’s it for another issue of The Digital Dentist newsletter. If I missed anything, please let me know so that I can include it for another newsletter or on my blog, The Digital Dentist.

[ Back to top]