A Time for Reflection

With the COVID-19 pandemic in the rearview mirror, the practice of dentistry has somewhat returned to established norms, in-person education and other opportunities are getting back up to speed, and it's hard to believe that the holiday season is already here and another year is coming to an end. For many, this is a time for family and reflection about our lives. For Inside Dentistry, this is a time for reflection about the past year of the profession with our annual trends in dentistry issue.

In 2022, technology adoption is back on the rise. The percentage of dentists responding to our annual readership survey who reported devoting 15% or more of their yearly practice budget to purchasing new technology dipped from 56% in 2019 to 53% in 2020 and 47% in 2021; however, it is back up to 55% in this year's survey. Notably, the percentage of respondents who indicated that they use digital impression systems jumped by almost 10% from 43% in 2021 to 52% in 2022. This is understandable given the many advantages of intraoral scanners. Although for certain procedures, such as marginating veneers in the esthetic zone, dentists may still prefer to use a double cord-packing technique with traditional impression materials, the use of intraoral scanners can improve the accuracy, predictability, and efficiency of placing many types of restorations. Moreover, many of the latest iterations of these devices include other useful features, such as the ability to capture intraoral color images and caries detection technologies.

Be sure to check out this month's cover story, Trends in Dentistry 2022, to learn more about the trends in technology as well as those on the business side of dentistry and in clinical practice. Using this information to benchmark your practice can be useful to see where you fit into the bigger picture of the profession and to help you identify potential areas to evolve and grow. However, it is important to keep in mind that what is right for another dentist's practice may not be right for yours and that just because something's on trend doesn't necessarily mean that it will improve your outcomes or your profitability. Be inspired but remember that you do you!

Robert C. Margeas, DDS
Editor-in-Chief, Inside Dentistry
Private Practice, Des Moines, Iowa
Adjunct Professor
Department of Operative Dentistry
University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
robert.margeas@broadcastmed.com