Dental News - EAO–DGI joint meeting presents “Berlin reloaded”

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EAO–DGI joint meeting presents “Berlin reloaded”

The 30th annual scientific meeting of the European Association for Osseointegration is taking place in the German capital. (Image: Noppasin Wongchum/Shutterstock)

BERLIN, Germany: The European Association for Osseointegration (EAO) and the German Association of Oral Implantology (DGI) are co-hosting a meeting at CityCube Berlin, marking the 30th and 37th anniversaries of the EAO and DGI annual meetings, respectively. The joint event will take place from 28 to 30 September, and the organisers anticipate a turnout of over 5,000 participants. This year’s theme, “Berlin reloaded”, refers to the originally scheduled 2020 live conference that was cancelled owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The congress will focus on three main topics. Firstly, advances in digital technology will be considered, highlighting developments in artificial intelligence (AI), augmented reality, big data and data protection. Secondly, the congress will address the challenges and considerations for the frail patient demographic, given the increasing ageing population. Finally, peri-implantitis will be a significant focus, underscoring its relevance in the field.

“AI is creeping into many areas of medicine, particularly diagnostics. Big data will give dentists the chance to assess personal risk profiles like we’ve done with other diseases. In the future we’ll potentially use big data to establish an individual patient’s prognosis or risk profile,” said Prof. Henning Schliephake, co-chair of this year’s event, in an interview published by the EAO.

He continued: “Augmented reality has moved from theory to practice over the past couple of years, for instance with headsets that project data into the surgeon’s field of vision. This kind of tool will probably become part of mainstream dentistry within a very short time. Tools like these will mean that the surgeon can directly match the planning data to the surgical procedure and get real-time feedback.”

Commenting on the third congress topic, Prof. Florian Beuer, co-chair and president of the DGI, said: “Peri-implantitis is a topic that we still don’t know enough about. There are many treatment approaches and associated questions. At the same time, exciting new discoveries are emerging that should help identify patients who are at risk in the future. The goal isn’t just to treat peri-implantitis once it’s been identified, but to be much more active in prevention, then take particular care of those patients at risk.”

The surgical treatment of peri-implantitis will be explored in the “Battle of Concepts” session. According to the organisers, three approaches to treating peri-implantitis—non-surgical treatment, the resective approach and the regenerative approach—will be addressed. “All three have their indications, along with pros, cons and limitations. These will be discussed alongside footage of three surgical procedures,” said Prof. Schliephake.

According to Prof. Beuer, this session will discuss the role of the immune response in peri-implantitis and associated factors such as the shape and material of the implant, as these are often neglected when speaking about the causes of the disease. He said: “The shape impacts accessibility, while the type of material can influence the health of the soft tissue as well.”

The congress will feature 140 speakers from 25 countries, an exhibition, industry forums and hands-on sessions. Although English will serve as the predominant congress language, the DGI sessions will be presented in German. However, all sessions will be available in multiple languages, thanks to simultaneous interpreting services using AI.

“This year we’re excited to be piloting live translation using AI, which will enable people to experience the congress live in 26 languages. This also ties in with the theme of the Berlin congress originally planned for 2020, which was ‘Tear down this wall’. Breaking down language barriers and helping people who aren’t fluent in English to participate in the congress is very important,” explained Prof. Schliephake.

Dental professionals who cannot attend in person will be able to immerse themselves in the scientific programme in a special virtual format. According to the organisers, they have gained expertise from providing online programmes over the last three years, and their hybrid approach will offer new and exciting perspectives for all participants.

More information on the congress can be found at congress.eao.org.

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