The world is holding its breath in the times of the coronavirus. The COVID-19 crisis is having a profound impact on social life and poses acute economic challenges for many industries, and the dental industry is no exception. Many events, including conferences and conventions, in the field are being cancelled or postponed. Osstem Implant too has announced the postponement of its 13^th annual global symposium, the 2020 Osstem World Meeting in Istanbul in Turkey, to next year.

Driving a digital transition of dental conferences

At the same time, however, by employing high technology and new technical solutions for digitalisation, Osstem Implant is taking a crucial leap towards the new era of implantology. Since 2018, Osstem Implant has already been providing dental professionals with opportunities to participate in its annual global meeting by offering live-streaming services. Based on its years of experience in digital transformation, Osstem Implant invites dental professionals around the world to an entirely virtual global conference experience this year. The Osstem Meeting Online will run until 27 June 2020, and the entire programme, including nine lectures and five live surgeries, will come alive via its own interactive live-streaming platform.

Hoping that the global situation will get better, we provide the ultimate virtual live conference experience this year, bringing dental professionals of the world closer to innovative ways of living together, Osstem Implant stated.

Knowledge transfer through real-time interaction

Whether they are at entry level and keen to learn or experienced dental professionals seeking a new challenge, attendees will find relevant standard and highly advanced live surgeries and comprehensive seminars by world-renowned speakers. Allowing the maximum knowledge transfer through real-time interaction between speakers and attendees, the first session on 21 April featured two live surgeries. Covering rare cases of implant placement in partially and completely edentulous patients aged over 70, it successfully delivered first-class implant treatment educational content to participants. All attendees had the opportunity to pose real-time questions and engage further with the speakers and other participants after the session.

Towards solidarity in dental implantology

On 27 June, the conference will celebrate its grand finale with a live surgery by Dr Marco Tallarico from Italy, and this will be combined with a socially sustainable fundraising campaign, in which the speaker, Osstem Implant and all attendees will actively participate and engage with one another. The entire amount of the fund collected will be donated to an organisation in Italy for support in overcoming the COVID-19 crisis.

Register now

Next sessions will be held on 12 May and 4, 18 and 27 June. Online registration for the Osstem Meeting Online will remain open until 27 June. More information about the meeting and registration can be found here or via the social media channels of Osstem Implant.

 

 

Lead author Dr Bushra Ahmad, assistant professor of periodontics at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine in Boston, told Dental Tribune International: “Our team was interested in investigating whether omega-3 fatty acids, specifically eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), could influence inflammatory pathways in both the oral cavity and the systemic circulation.”

She continued: “Although omega-3 fatty acids are recognised for their anti-inflammatory properties, their effects on oral inflammatory markers in humans have not been well established. This made the topic particularly relevant, as it may help us better understand whether a systemic nutritional intervention could complement established approaches to managing oral inflammation.”

The study involved 240 patients with stable coronary artery disease and who were undergoing statin therapy. For 30 months, patients received either a high-dose prescription formulation of EPA and DHA or no omega-3 supplementation. For the oral analysis, gingival crevicular fluid was collected from both maxillary quadrants. The researchers then compared the oral inflammatory markers in the fluid and systemic inflammatory markers in the blood between the test and control groups.

The analysis found that the omega-3 group had significantly lower levels of one oral inflammatory marker in the left quadrant. These patients also had a significantly lower neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, a marker of systemic inflammation that has been associated with cardiovascular outcomes. “The findings suggest that omega-3 fatty acids may have a potential role as an adjunct to established mechanical plaque control measures by helping reduce oral and systemic inflammation,” Dr Ahmad explained.

“Interestingly, the reduction in the oral inflammatory marker was observed on the left side but not the right. We proposed that toothbrushing behaviour and handedness might have contributed to this difference, as right-handed individuals may remove plaque more effectively from the left side,” Dr Ahmad commented. She added that, since handedness was not recorded in the study, this explanation should be considered exploratory and requires further investigation.

The study forms part of broader collaborative research exploring the relationship between periodontal and systemic health. Through several ongoing projects, the researchers are examining how periodontitis and oral inflammation may be linked to cardiovascular disease, cognitive function and systemic inflammation. “Our goal is to contribute to a more integrated understanding of oral health as an important component of overall health,” Dr Ahmad said.

Other nutritional approaches to modulating oral inflammation are also being explored. Dental Tribune International has recently reported on a fasting-mimicking diet investigated as an adjunct to non-surgical periodontal therapy and on an association between a plant-rich Mediterranean diet and lower periodontal disease severity and inflammatory marker levels.

Dr Ahmad cautioned that the findings of the present study should not be generalised to other patient populations or to other omega-3 supplements. Further research is needed to help determine whether the findings translate into long-term periodontal and cardiovascular benefits and whether similar effects are observed in broader patient populations.

The study, titled “Omega-3 fatty acids and oral and systemic inflammation: A secondary analysis of a randomized trial in patients with coronary artery disease”, was published in the August 2026 issue of the Journal of the American Dental Association.

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