GSDM Shines at 2017 American Association of Endodontists Annual Session
Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine (GSDM) residents and alumni were a strong presence at the American Association of Endodontists (AAE) Annual Session, held April 26–29, 2017, in New Orleans, Louisiana.
AAE 2017 set a new record as more than 4,000 members, guests and exhibitors attended the annual meeting in New Orleans. Cutting-edge 3-D surgery was one of the many highlights as Dr. Syngcuk Kim performed microscopic surgery on two patients “behind the curtains” while the audience viewed the procedure with 3-D glasses, seeing the treatments just as Dr. Kim did.
On Thursday, April 27, 2017, over 100 alumni and faculty from GSDM’s Advanced Specialty Education Program in Endodontics, as well as their family and friends, attended a special Alumni reception hosted by Dean and Mrs. Jeffrey W. Hutter, and Dr. Sami Chogle, Director of the Advanced Specialty Education Program in Endodontics at GSDM.
At the reception, Dr. Chogle welcomed all the attendees and sincerely thanked the alumni for their continued support.
Dean Hutter spoke next about the crucial role that GSDM’s alumni have in the continued success of GSDM in working towards its goal of becoming the premier institution promoting excellence in dental education, research, oral healthcare, and community service in order to improve the overall health of the global population. He also updated the endodontic alumni about the status of the Addition / Renovation of the GSDM building project, as well as what will be taking place on the 2nd floor of the building as a result of the construction.
In closing, Dean Hutter praised Dr. Chogle and the Endodontic faculty for the outstanding job they are doing in educating the endodontic residents and providing endodontic care to the patients being treated in the Postdoctoral Endodontic Patient Treatment Center.
Dean Hutter was followed by President of the Endodontic Alumni Association, Dr. Juan Savelli DMD 00 ENDO 03. Dr. Savelli updated the alumni about the record increase in alumni membership in the Endodontic Alumni Association, and encouraged more to join. He also informed the alumni of the dissolution of the Schilder Institute for the Advancement of Endodontics (SIAE).
After the speeches, the attendees and their families mingled with each other and the other alumni, catching up on friendships forged in GSDM’s endodontic program.
Several residents and faculty members also participated in the 2017 AAE Annual Session in a variety of ways.
Two GSDM Endodontic residents delivered oral presentations:
- Yousef Alnowailaty ENDO 17, “Comparison of Two Methodologies for Testing Cyclic Fatigue Resistance of Nickel-Titanium Rotary Files.”
Nickel-Titanium (NiTi) rotary files have become an important adjunct to endodontic treatment of the root canal system. However, NiTi rotary files have a risk of unexpected fracture without any visible signs of deformation. Various methodologies were developed to test cyclic fatigue. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of the stainless steel and the glass tube method on the cyclic fatigue resistance of NiTi rotary files. Material and Methods: 450 new NiTi rotary files were tested in this study. Files were divided into two groups: one group was subjected to a stainless steel artificial grooved canal model, second group employed the glass tube model. Three file sizes were selected from each file system. The files were subjected to an angle of curvature of 60 degrees with a 5 mm radius of curvature at 300 rpm for both devices. The number of cycles to failure (NCF) and length of fracture file piece were recorded and statistically analyzed. Significant differences were found between the two testing methodologies. Both methodologies showed a similar pattern of relationship between file comparisons with the GT method showing greater significant differences among file types. Vortex Blue® was the most resistant to cyclic fatigue, and K3TM system was the least resistant to cyclic fatigue regardless of the testing methodology. Conclusion: The glass tube method is a more accurate measure of cyclic fatigue resistance than the stainless steel method for cyclic fatigue. Vortex Blue and smaller tip sized files performed best in this study.
- Mona Haghani DMD 14 ENDO 17, “Efficacy of Cone Beam Computed Tomography Use in Endodontics.”
The study’s aims were to: 1) evaluate whether or not there was a treatment plan change, if CBCT is used; and 2) evaluate if the use of CBCT as a diagnostic tool improves the treatment outcome. This was an IRB approved retrospective study of all RCTs performed at BU Post-doctoral clinic from 2009 – 2015. Of 10,836 cases completed, 674 cases had CBCT and 32 had a pre- and post-CBCT treatment plan with at least 3 months follow up. Cases where matched with cases without CBCT based on patients’ sex, age, tooth type, diagnosis, procedure performed, and insurance type. Chart notes and treatments were reviewed to identify treatment plan changes. The investigator evaluated outcome as either Success/Survive/ Failure. Statistical Analyses tested for differences in treatment plan and Success/Survive/ Failure rate. 25 cases and 49 controls were evaluated. There were no differences in mean age (46) or insurance between cases and controls. In over half of the cases (56.5%) the treatment plan changed when CBCT was used. Cases with CBCT had 32% success/ 60% survival/ 8% failure rate, whereas cases without CBCT had 22.4% success/ 53.1% survival/ 24.5% failure rate, p-value = 0.21. The use of CBCT as diagnostic tool affected more than half of the treatment plans. While CBCT appeared to improve the treatment outcomes, the difference in this small sample is not statistically significant. Future research will require larger sample sizes to test whether CBCT improves treatment efficacy.
Dr. Sok-Ja Janket, Research Associate Professor in the Department of General Dentistry, was also active at the Annual Session. She co-authored a poster presentation titled, “Characteristics of the Cohort Opting for Endodontic Treatment.”