The dental industry is producing new innovations designed to enhance both patient care and treatment results. From less harsh whitening techniques to organizations supporting administrative tasks, here are some of the latest innovations leading to brighter smiles.

Purple Toothpaste

Purple toothpaste helps with teeth whitening; Photo: Instagram, @popwhitesmile
Purple toothpaste helps with teeth whitening; Photo: Instagram, @popwhitesmile

The latest innovation in toothpaste is purple toothpaste, which uses color theory to make your smile appear whiter without bleach or other harsher teeth-whitening chemicals. The color counteracts any yellow shades in your teeth for a short-term whitening effect.

“Purple toothpaste is a type of toothpaste that contains purple water-soluble dyes that make teeth appear whiter,” says Dr. Marina Gonchar, DMD and owner of Skin to Smile. “Purple toothpaste takes advantage of the color theory — complementary colors [like purple and yellow] on the color wheel cancel each other out.”

According to Ira Handschuh, DDS, of The Dental Design Center in White Plains, NY, the effect is temporary and dissipates within a short time, returning your teeth to their original color. It’s also notable that, unlike traditional whitening techniques, this type of whitening works on both real and manufactured teeth. The technique has not earned its ADA certification, however, because it doesn’t contain fluoride.

Curodont

Person in dental appointment teeth cleaning
Curodont utilizes Guided Enamel Remineralization (GER), which bridges the gap between prevention and invasive restoration treatments that treat carious lesions and white spots. According to Pat Bauer, Heartland Dental’s President and Chief Executive Officer, Curodont uses a proprietary self-assembling peptide that remineralizes target enamel.

The formula penetrates deep into the lesion, using calcium and phosphate from the patient’s saliva to help new hydroxyapatite grow. The remineralization is effective within 5 minutes of application and continues strengthening the teeth within weeks following the treatment. This method offers a 95% success rate and 13 times higher probability of success compared to fluoride alone.

Dental Support Organizations (DSO)

Dental support organizations support businesses

Also known as Dental Service Organizations (DSOs), DSOs are businesses that partner with dentists to manage non-clinical aspects of their practices, allowing dentists to focus on patient care. This can include running payroll, equipment maintenance, ordering supplies, marketing, business management, and more.

DSOs also provide peer-to-peer networks that centralize and share data across several locations using cloud-based practice management systems. These networks allow dentists to connect with each other and provide help by sharing support and advice.

“At their root, all DSOs provide critical business management and support for nonclinical operations; enabling dentists to focus on delivering dental care,” said Andrew Smith, executive director of The Association of Dental Support Organizations or ADSO. “The variations of DSO types come from the different structural ways dentists choose to affiliate their practice. Based on a dentist’s specific business needs or the community they serve, a dentist may favor one type over the other.

Tune in to the Science Channel to watch Smile Science at 10 AM ET on Saturday, October 5!

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