Artificial Intelligence and the Research and Reporting of Dental History.

Artificial intelligence is much in the news. One issue is whether it might be a useful tool for dental research. This paper provides ad overview of AI and explores its usefulness in some simple history of dentistry topics, including potential dangers.

The Faculty of Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Surgeons of England: An overview of the first 70 year's achievements.

The events leading up to the founding of the Faculty of Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Surgeons of England are described. The role of the FDS in establishing the training for dental specialties and research is recorded.

[Dentists and National Socialism. Systematic Literature Review and Research Questions]. / Zahnärzte und Dentisten im Nationalsozialismus. Forschungsstand und aktuelle Forschungsfragen.

Compared to the rich literature on Nazi medicine in general, the connection between dentists and National Socialism is less well documented. Neither the elites of the field from this era nor those excluded from the profession are catalogued in a systematic manner. The aims of this contribution are to assemble and review the relevant literature and show how German dentistry organizations have handled this chapter of their professional history. Trends in the literature since the 1980s are examined and it is pointed out, which areas have received some attention and which have not yet been addressed. Thus, this contribution will serve as both the basis and the starting point for new research into the field.

Sugar industry influence on the scientific agenda of the National Institute of Dental Research's 1971 National Caries Program: a historical analysis of internal documents.

BACKGROUND: In 1966, the National Institute of Dental Research (NIDR) began planning a targeted research program to identify interventions for widespread application to eradicate dental caries (tooth decay) within a decade. In 1971, the NIDR launched the National Caries Program (NCP). The objective of this paper is to explore the sugar industry's interaction with the NIDR to alter the research priorities of the NIDR NCP. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We used internal cane and beet sugar industry documents from 1959 to 1971 to analyze industry actions related to setting research priorities for the NCP. The sugar industry could not deny the role of sucrose in dental caries given the scientific evidence. They therefore adopted a strategy to deflect attention to public health interventions that would reduce the harms of sugar consumption rather than restricting intake. Industry tactics included the following: funding research in collaboration with allied food industries on enzymes to break up dental plaque and a vaccine against tooth decay with questionable potential for widespread application, cultivation of relationships with the NIDR leadership, consulting of members on an NIDR expert panel, and submission of a report to the NIDR that became the foundation of the first request for proposals issued for the NCP. Seventy-eight percent of the sugar industry submission was incorporated into the NIDR's call for research applications. Research that could have been harmful to sugar industry interests was omitted from priorities identified at the launch of the NCP. Limitations are that this analysis relies on one source of sugar industry documents and that we could not interview key actors. CONCLUSIONS: The NCP was a missed opportunity to develop a scientific understanding of how to restrict sugar consumption to prevent tooth decay. A key factor was the alignment of research agendas between the NIDR and the sugar industry. This historical example illustrates how industry protects itself from potentially damaging research, which can inform policy makers today. Industry opposition to current policy proposals-including a World Health Organization guideline on sugars proposed in 2014 and changes to the nutrition facts panel on packaged food in the US proposed in 2014 by the US Food and Drug Administration-should be carefully scrutinized to ensure that industry interests do not supersede public health goals.

Albert Edwin William (LOMA) Miles (1912-2008) extracts from personal letters on dental matters.

Professor Miles (1912-2008) was a key player establishing dentistry as an academic subject. In the many letters he wrote to Helen Liversidge and me, he describes his involvement as Hon. Curator of the Odontological Museum, Editor Archives of Oral Biology, Assistant scientific editor of the BDJ. He writes about his association with Robert Maxwell and the Pergamon Press and his interests and friendships.

Sesquicentennial review: the making of a profession.

I shook my head on many occasions as I contemplated the changes in dentistry that have occurred over the past 150 years that I would discuss in this article, often thinking to myself, "How could the early dentists have possibly practiced dentistry every day under those circumstances and with those tools?" It made my own clinical career seem pretty easy but engendered in me great admiration for my predecessors and our profession.

Harold C. Slavkin: A Transformative Leader of Our Times.

Harold (Hal) C. Slavkin, DDS, the 22nd president of the American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research (1993 to 1994), died on December 22, 2023. During a career that spanned almost 6 decades, Hal distinguished himself as an international authority on craniofacial biology and an advocate for oral health equity. He served as dean of the University of Southern California's dental school, founded the school's Center for Craniofacial Molecular Biology, created the nation's first PhD program in craniofacial biology, and served as the sixth director of the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research. Hal's studies of the molecular and cellular underpinnings of craniofacial malformations prepared him to champion translational research later in his career, when his work with patient advocates revealed the importance of applying new discoveries to clinical practice. A visionary thinker, skilled administrator, progressive educator, compelling communicator, researcher, scholar, and mentor, Hal was known as a Renaissance leader. He rejoiced in fostering collaborative synergies among people and organizations. Throughout his life, family was his central grounding force. He and his wife, Lois, advanced a wide range of social and community initiatives and took great pride in their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. We remember Hal for his indelible spirit, unflappable enthusiasm for science, fierce advocacy for social justice, and infectious zest for life. Here, we outline his multidimensional accomplishments through the lenses of academia, government, and nonprofit organizations. Although it is with heavy hearts that we bid goodbye to this remarkable man, our spirits are lightened by the many gifts he left behind.

The winds of change in dentistry--1950 and 2000.

SERIES SYNOPSIS: This series examines how scientific, political, and social forces have impacted modern dental practice and is divided into four parts. Parts 1 and 3 examine the scientific, political, and social changes that occurred in the United States in two periods: one from 1850 to 1900 and the other from 1950 to 2000. Parts 2 and 4 study how these transformations impacted dental practice and dentistry as a profession. (Parts 1 and 2 may be read at www.compendiumlive.com.) The series compares the events of two 50-year periods and their effect on the subsequent decades. From this analysis, it might be possible to make some predications for dentistry in the 21st century.

David Farrar Mitchell: dental researcher & educator.

David Farrar Mitchell, DDS, PhD (1918-1975), was a pioneer in aviation dentistry and a leader in dental education, service and research. In the mid-1940's, he was the first dental officer assigned to the School of Aviation Medicine (SAM) in San Antonio, Texas, a unique, Army Air Corps organization for research and teaching. From 1942-1946, as a trained dental researcher and oral pathologist, he published works on dental problems afflicting military aviators, especially those associated with high altitude flying. His work greatly influenced ongoing dental treatment of military flyers. He served as faculty chairman of two dental schools: The University of Minnesota (1948-1955) and Indiana University (1955-1975). Of his 33 graduate students in oral pathology/medicine, 28 became department chairs at dental schools throughout the world. He was president of the American Academy of Oral Pathology (1962) and of the American Association for Dental Research (1975). From 1969 to 1975, he was editor of the prestigious Journal of Dental Research. During his professional career, Dr. Mitchell published 120 scientific articles on diverse topics relating to oral diagnosis and oral medicine.