The idea for this article began with a somewhat sarcastic observation when, watching the local news, a report on an area school system providing free laptops to its students concluded with, “Every student should have this opportunity.”

“Yeah,” said Someone, “in a perfect world.”

But sarcasm will only take you so far. Then what?

This idea stuck, and it occurred to us to follow where it might lead. We decided to ask some well-recognized names from our state’s dental community to join us in creating a wish list for the profession. We gave each of them three wishes for their particular areas of expertise, as well as for the profession as a whole, as these things always take on a life of their own. Read More »

Mercury emissions are decreasing in Minnesota waters thanks in part to the stewardship of the Minnesota Dental Association (MDA) in its efforts supporting the collection and recycling of dental amalgam solids. This article is a brief history of that work and that commitment dating back to 1990. Read More »

The members of the Minnesota legislature have debated methods by which access to dental care and treatment of dental disease can be improved at a cost lower than that of present delivery systems. This review sheds light on some significant aspects of what the dental profession has learned over the last century that has proven significantly beneficial to the overall health of the American populace. Recommendations are made in the use of cost-effective dental public health interventions that could be used to provide better access and improved dental health at lower cost. Read More »

The Minnesota Dental Association (MDA) supports the findings of a long-awaited report from the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) on dental access and reimbursement. The report was directed by the 2013 Minnesota Legislature in response to reduced patient participation in Minnesota Health Care Programs (MHCP). Read More »

The Minnesota Dental Association (MDA) has serious concerns about the inconclusive nature of findings in a report issued by the Minnesota Department of Health on the early impact of dental therapists on the delivery of and access to dental services. Read More »

Minnesota dentists will provide free dental care services for children in need, during the Minnesota Dental Association’s Give Kids a Smile event on February 7 and 8, 2014. This unique, charitable dentistry event will provide care to 6,000 children at over 200 dental clinics throughout the state. Read More »

A new appreciation for the direct relationship of mouth health to systemic health is forcing re-evaluation of previous concepts of oral health strategies. Although a person shows adaptation to loss of some permanent teeth, it appears a threshold of 10 functional pairs or 20 teeth have linkage to a number of disabling diseases of aging. Read More »

Due to social, psychological, nutritional, functional, and esthetic motivations, individuals are expecting satisfactory intermediate fixed prosthetic options when seeking treatment for their compromised dentition. In addition, an interim immediate denture (IID) can be used by the restorative dentist to assess the available inter-occlusal space, create a radiographic surgical guide, direct implant placement, and provide diagnostic information for the final prosthesis. The aim of this article is to provide a case study where a maxillary immediate denture was used to drive all phases of the fullarch implant rehabilitation. Read More »

The treatment of cancer patients using chemotherapy or radiation precipitates many oral side effects that can lead to serious local and systemic complications. Oral health care management is necessary to prevent or limit oral side effects as well as to provide palliative treatment for oral complications. Read More »

Two dentists from northeastern Minnesota were recently awarded the first installment of a loan forgiveness grant as part of the Martha Mordini Rukavina Loan Forgiveness Program. Dr. Alex Lund and Dr. Whitney Johnson Cobby each received a check for $30,000. Read More »