Wednesday, January 2, 2013
Well 2012 has come to a close. I guess the Mayans were wrong, or at least our interpretation of what they said was wrong. Either way, the world moves on.
2013 looks to be a year different from all others we have had, and dentistry is no exception. Below are a few predictions I have about where our industry is headed.
If you have predictions of your own, drop a comment below.
Social Media: Fail in some ways, but still evolving
I still have not seen a good use of Facebook when it comes to marketing your office. Great, you get a few “Likes” from loyal fans of your practice, but then what? Do your patients really want to be blasted with whitening promotions? Or to see that esthetic case they could never afford? Plus, your message gets stuck in the timeline with the rest of their friends, diluting your marketing message with posts about what people had for breakfast.
What will make an impact is the ever growing number of rating sites for dentists, with such classics as Yelp! still the standard bearer. These sites are moving beyond restaurant ratings, and sites specific to doctors and dentistry are growing. There have been a growing number of cases in which dentists have tried to fight a negative review, and in each case have consistently failed. It is important to pay attention to what is out there, and what is being said about you. Services such as ReputationMonitor from 1-800-DENTIST are a great start at helping you keep up to speed with the ever changing field of social media.
Death of the Pano
The panoramic x-ray was a nice traditional way to see the mouth all at once. We certainly saw a surge of new machines over the last 10 years as the product went digital. We even saw dramatic improvements in clarity. However, with the onset of cone beam imaging, the distortion inherent in these 2D images will become more and more irrelevant.
If anything, we are starting to see an emergence of combination systems, with both pano and cone beam integrated into the same machine. In those cases, the pano becomes a quick screening tool for a later scan, and allows slightly less radiation exposure for the patient. We have just seen a growing number of cases in which the pano either misses the diagnosis compared to cone beam, or creates a distorted view of what is really going on. Cone beam is simply the future of dentistry with its applications moving well beyond simple implant dentistry. And speaking of implants, if you are still placing them off a panoramic x-ray only, you might want to up your insurance coverage in 2013.
Digital Impressions
I don’t think we are seeing the end of traditional PVS or polyether impression materials as dentistry moves from analog to digital. Nonetheless, we will see a growing number of digital impression systems landing in dental offices this year.
Upgraded machines from Sirona and 3M, as well as new additions from 3Shape and Glidewell are redefining this category. The machines are less expensive, have improved the rate of capture, and can be more accurate than a PVS impression. These factors are finally allowing it to make sense for practices to switch away from the traditional impression.
Digital X-rays – Finally…
Most statistics in dentistry show digital x-rays as having little more than a 50% adoption rate. In 2013, with the larger push to digital records and the paperless office, we will see that number continue to grow. Plus, there are many new sensors on the market at prices that make sense in terms of ROI. Dentalcompare produced a few webinars in 2012, including one by Dr. Rand Mattson, discussing how this is one area that can have a huge impact and completely change your practice for the better.
Increase in Caries
I used to worry that all the fluoride in the water or in oral rinses would eventually work us out of a job, and that everyone would have solid, healthy teeth that needed no dentistry other than a cleaning. In 2013, we will see a trend that instead shows an increase in the amount of decay we are seeing in our offices:
- A growing dissention over fluoride – More and more I see parents asking to skip fluoride treatments for kids at cleaning appointments, and have switched to non-fluoride toothpaste at home
- Poor diet – As I stood in line behind a young boy and his dad at the grocery store this week, I was thinking that the 99 cent, 36-ounce Coca Cola the son was drinking would eventually result in thousands of dollars in dental bills for that family. Considering the ever growing number of soda machines on school campuses, our kids teeth are more at risk than ever.
- Illicit drugs – Use of drugs such as meth not only damage the brain, but leave a train-wreck of destruction in the mouth.
- Reluctance – We still have many patients who do not show up to regular recall visits. It reduces our ability to find things early, and does not allow us to touch base on areas that can be improved in their hygiene. If anything, dentistry is often still seen as elective rather than an integral part of overall health.
The Continued Rise of the Educated Patient
Gone are the days where you could sit back in your white coat and just let people know what they need to do in their mouth. Patients are more educated on dentistry, even asking questions about the type of porcelain we use on crowns.
This year, plan on spending more time educating patients about their dental needs. Invest in a good intraoral camera to allow them to see what you see. Pay attention to the media (or simply watch the news feed on Dentalcompare) for nationwide news on issues such as fluoride, radiation exposure or the link between oral health and cardiovascular disease. Know that your patients are watching for those issues and will come in with questions about them. We can no longer wave away those concerns. We need to understand them from the ground up.