Dental News Roundup January 2010
BY LAUREN UZDIENSKI, JANUARY 28, 2010
We're listening. In response to your feedback on our 2009 readership survey, we're broadening the dental coverage on our blog. You can help by letting us know what you think or directing your press releases and scientific articles to Lauren at luzdienski AT healthpointcapital DOT com.
Earnings
Biomet reported FQ2:10 (ended November 30, 2009) revenues of $696.0 million, up 5% over the year-ago period. Recon sales, including dental, increased 6% overall to $528.4 million. 3i reported a 5% decrease in worldwide dental sales in FQ2:10 and an 8% decrease when excluding the effects of currency. Sales were down 8% in the U.S. The company attributed the decline to the "continued impact from the global economic downturn" and notes among the highlights for the year that the Encode Complete System was launched in Europe and "experienced strong market acceptance."
Product Introduction and Update
Sirona Dental Systems launched the inEos Blue desktop scanner. The company says the device uses short-wavelength visible blue light to scan a model from any direction, allowing the technician to limit the impression to only the required treatment area. The scanner will be available in February 2010.
Clinical
A study conducted in Sweden found that among 600 patients who received dental implants, 28% were shown to have some supporting bone loss around the implant. As expected, smokers had higher rates of bone loss than non-smokers. The authors also noted that inflammation was common around the site of the implant and, importantly, that bone loss was not linear, as previous thought, but accelerated over time.
Market Forecasts
An article on the evolution of dental implants in Vail Daily Health notes that "there were more dental implants placed in the past five years than in the first 20 years combined" and projects that the rate of implant placement will double again over the next five years.
Partnerships
Nobel Biocare signed a preferred partnership agreement with Ivoclar Vivadent, a provider of "high-performance" ceramic and acrylic prosthetic materials used in a variety of restorative and prosthetic dental products. This partnership will involve the development of new materials, joint educational and training programs and commercial activities.
Zimmer Dental and XCPT Communication Technologies, LLC have signed a three-year agreement to incorporate XCPT's software into Zimmer Dental's Digital Dentistry initiatives. XCPT describes their technology as a "highly graphical, face-to-face patient consultation and engagement tool."
Education
The American Academy of Periodontology is accepting abstracts for presentation at its annual meeting until March 26, 2010. The conference will be held October 30 to November 2 in Honolulu.
Collaborations
Joining the orthopedic industry in supplying aid to Haiti, the Eco-Dentistry Association, a dental society committed to using eco-friendly methods, is working with Discus Dental, Preserve and Pure Life Dental to deliver dental products to victims of the earthquake. Among the supplies were more than 4,000 toothbrushes, 9,000 tubes of toothpaste, thousands of packages of dental floss and alcohol-free mouthwash and 10 cases of latex gloves.
