NEW YORK CITY: The 86th Greater New York Dental Meeting (GNYDM), held Nov. 26 through Dec. 1, attracted nearly 60,000 dental professionals from around the world, giving attendees the opportunity to view the latest dental products, learn about the latest procedures and explore new technologies. The meeting featured more than 1,500 exhibit hall booths and several thousand new products.

With workshops, luncheon learning, seminars, specialty programs and symposia to choose from, the real problem for attendees was finding the time to fit everything in.

Two Live Dentistry Arenas

There were not one but two Live Dentistry Arenas to choose from, and these learning locations were a big draw for attendees. Every seat was a good one, thanks to the multiple large screen TVs scattered throughout the seating area, as well as the huge screens at the front on either side of the stage.

On Monday morning, while Dr Stephen J. Gordon worked on a live patient, Dr Garry Bey explained ‘The Endo/Restorative Continuum: Modern Techniques and Tools for the General Dentist’ that Gordon was demonstrating in the Live Dentistry Arena No. 2.

Dr Ara Nazarian discussed ‘Simple Implant Placement in a Complex Economy’ on one side of the exhibition floor at the Live Dentistry Arena. Dr Michael Miyasaki held the stage at the other arena with a morning session on ‘Minimally Invasive Aesthetic Indirect Restorative Procedures,’ and after lunch continued with ‘Advanced Imaging for the New and Retreatment Endodontic Patient.’

Dr Douglas Terry offered ‘Anterior Fiber-Reinforced Composite Resin Bridge.’ Dr Brian Shroder offered a presentation titled ‘From Elastomeric Impressions to Digital Replication: It’s A Scanning Wand, Not A Magic Wand.’

DTSC Symposia

Around the corner and down the aisle from Live Dentistry Arena No. 1 was the Dental Tribune Study Club Symposia C.E. lecture series.

Dr Gregori Kurtzman spoke on the topic of ‘Incorporating New Advances in Dental Materials and Techniques into Your Restorative Practice,’ while Noel Brandon-Kelsch spoke about ‘Eco-Friendly Infection Control: Understanding the Balance.’

The attendees who poured out of Dr Martin Goldstein’s crowded lecture had positive things to say about the speakers and the DTSC Symposia platform in general. “I learned quite a bit in the lecture. I don’t do as many composites, direct composite resins, so it was very interesting to me,” said Dr Ophelia Jackson, who practices in New York. “It’s a really great format.”

Dr Mayer Sinensky from New York City stopped on his way out of the lecture by Freedman, Goldstep and Lynch to say what he thought of the program: “I think the format is great. It’s a small room so you feel like you are in a classroom, and the lecturers are very good speakers as well as knowledgeable in their field. The lecture made me want to visit some of the booths to look at the products. This is my first time at a DTSC lecture, but now I will look closely at the rest of the schedule to see if there are others I might want to attend.”

Tuesday morning’s schedule began with Drs David Lynch, Fay Goldstep and George Freedman discussing ‘Soft-tissue Lasers and Caries Diagnosis.’ In all, there were seven lectures Tuesday, and other speakers included Drs Lou Chmura, Marc Gottlieb, Dov Almog, Bettina Basrani, Dwayne Karateew and Dirk Gieselmann.

Glass classrooms

There were also glass classrooms on the exhibit hall floor, and although they were not free, they did provide an intimate and hands-on setting to try out new products, equipment and techniques. For example, Dr Joseph Massad guided attendees in two separate session on the topic of ‘Impressioning and Securing Implant-retained Complete Dentures.’

During his glass classroom presentation, Dr John Olmsted discussed ‘R U Ready for the 2 NU R’s in Endodontics?’ for rotary instrumentation and resin-bonded obturation. Judy Bendit, RDH, spoke about ‘Let’s Get to the Heart of Ultrasonics.’ Dr Zev Schulhof offered a Botox/Dysport workshop, and Dr Frank L. Higginbottom offered an ‘Implant Esthetics Workshop.’

Exhibit hall

Also at the 2010 New York Dental meeting, dental professionals were able to scope out aisle after aisle of new products, supplies and equipment. And just like news reports of increased consumer traffic in brick-and-mortar retailers over the all-important post-Thanksgiving ‘Black Friday’ weekend, signs at the Javits Center pointed to a strong business climate.

On Sunday, opening day of business for the 2010 meeting, the show floor was packed.

The goal, of course, was for dental professionals to bring back to their practices new tools that will allow them to improve patient care.

Dental Tribune combed through the aisles at GNYDM to see what was new, different and exciting. Here are a few highlights, out of the many offerings that were available at the meeting:

• Dentsply Pharma offered Oraqix, a needle-free pain relief system for scaling and root planing. Packaged in convenient, individual usage kits, the product is ideal for quadrant scaling, full-mouth periodontal procedures or periodontal maintenance. The numbing effects last for 20 minutes, only the intended treatment area is anesthetized.
• PureLife Dental offered a number of eco-friendly products, including latex and non-latex gloves, amalgam separators and waste compliance solutions.
• Ashtel Dental offered a number of products, including the Brush Buddies talking toothbrush, designed to make oral hygiene fun for kids.
• Also for kids, Beetling Design Corp., a new exhibitor at GNYDM, offered three-dimensional wall décor.
• EMS/Electro Medical Systems Corp. offered the Air-Flow Master subgingival prophylaxis unit, the miniMaster Piezon scaler, and many other products.
• Hu-Friedy set up its booth as a ‘comfort zone,’ offering hand massages and information about the company’s Hand Essentials infection control products.
• ChaseHealthAdvance offered patient financing options that can make treatment affordable for many patients. Each patient who is approved for the program receives a minimum of $5,000 in credit toward dental care.
• BleachBright offered a chairside teeth whitening system designed to get patients excited about their smile. According to the company, the product can improve teeth by eight shades in one 30-minute session.
• Endodontic supplies, including Roydent C-Files, Endo-Cleanse and C.L. Canal Lubricant, were available from Roydent Dental Products.
• Also for those who practice endodontics, Komet USA offered Endo Rescue tools, which are useful in the removal of instrument fragments that might occur during a procedure. The removal of such fragments is often extremely difficult, but Endo Rescue offers a simple and systematic solution.
• At VOCO America, offerings include Profluorid L synthetic resin matrix, Grandio Flow nano hybrid composite filler, and many other products.
• Dental Sharing, a company founded by Dr Glenn Godart, allows dentists to share digital X-rays and other electronic patient files with each other in a HIPPA-compliant manner. The web-based service offers the ability to manage and store full-resolution images and related documents, but it does not require any incremental hardware or software investment.
• Aseptico offered a new, fully self-contained mobile dental cart featuring one low-speed and two high-speed handpiece connections, high-volume and low-volume suction with overflow protection and electronic waste purge, and several options, including a piezo electronic scaler, a curing light and a height adjustable tray.
• Pentron Clinical offered Fusio Liquid Dentin, the first self-adhesive flowable composite that bonds to dentin and enamel without acid etching or a bonding agent. By fusing together adhesive and restorative technology into one product, Pentron has created what it calls one of the most versatile materials in dentistry.
• Aribex offered the NOMAD Pro handheld X-ray system. The cordless unit provides hundreds of images from a single battery charge.
• Tess Corp. offered show discounts on toothbrushes. The company also offered dental floss, proxi-tips and an implant-prophy kit.
• PhotoMed International offered a wide range of cameras and other photographic equipment. The folks at PhotoMed have the technical expertise to guide you to the equipment you might require to meet your specific needs.
• Zirc Co. offered a wide range of instrument cassettes and holders, tubs, accessories, mirrors, dams and many other supplies.
• Theta Corp. offered a wide selection of non-verbal intra-office communication tools, including a Multi-Channel Five-Lite System, and a Col-R-Lite Ten-Lite System.
• Axis Dental offered the All-Inclusive IPR Set, which is designed to allow you to begin to conservatively and quickly progress to an efficient, precise and painless technique for interproximal reduction.
• L&R Ultrasonics offered the SweepZone ultrasonic cleaning system and many other ultrasonic cleaners.

Many companies offered show specials or giveaways, and a number of others, including Invisalign, Gendex and Dexis offered educational opportunities right in their booths on the show floor. Dr David Clark offered presentations at 3M ESPE, and at Dentatus students from the New York University College of Dentistry discussed narrow body implants with meeting attendees.