Specialist Spotlight Archives - Dental Head Start

TIP #135 – Endodontic Radiography: How to catch that apex! with A/Prof William Ha

November 16, 2023November 14, 2023Leave a Comment

In dental school, taking PAs in endodontics has been incredibly fiddly. It really puts patients through the ringer trying to catch that apex when you missed it the first time. How should we be taking PAs, how many should we be taking, can I just use my apex locator instead? These are questions we’ve been dying to have a clear answer for, and if you’ve thought the same thing this episode is for you. Joining us again is Endodontist Associate Professor Ha to help give a resolution to this.

TIP #133 – Mythbusting in Rotary with A/Prof William Ha

September 14, 2023September 27, 2023Leave a Comment

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A lot of dental students that are about to graduate haven’t gotten much experience with rotary endodontics. With us here to bust many myths regarding rotary is Associate Professor Ha of the University of Sydney, a specialist endodontist and co-founder of the extremely helpful endo-prep app. If you’re looking for clarification on what a ‘hybrid system’ actually means and tips for rookies to avoid in using rotary than this is the episode for you.

TIP #131 – Hypo-what-mineralisation? with Dr Deb Wong

August 17, 2023August 17, 2023Leave a Comment

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We’ve all children come in for check-ups, with no signs of active decay, but their parents stop and ask, “What are those white flecks on their teeth?” or, “But why is their tooth all brown and speckled?”

Hypomineralisation. It can be a confusing situation – do you leave it, do you remove it, how much do you take away and how do you replace it?

In today’s episode we are joined by Dr Deb Wong, a specialist paediatric dentist based in Melbourne, to talk all about hypo mineralisation – what it is, how to explain it to parents and how we manage it in both the anterior and posterior region. This is a great practical episode with tips on exactly what you can do the next time you encounter another one of these situations.

FEATURE #84 – Special Needs Dentistry & Oral Health Advocacy with Dr Trudy Lin

July 31, 2023August 20, 2023Leave a Comment

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Inclusivity, equitability, and community – these are the themes for this month’s Feature. In this episode, we are joined by Dr Trudy Lin, one of 25 Special Needs dentists in Australia and a passionate advocate for equitable access to oral health for all individuals, with her work and contributions granting her the SA Young Australian of the Year Award in 2022.

In this conversation, Dr Trudy sheds light on her journey in specialising and how her mission has evolved over the years. We discuss her role within Citizen Advocacy, the story that led to her self-funding a Supported Independent Living Facility for those with special needs, becoming a mindset and leadership coach and a public speaker.

Dentistry is stressful, and it’s easy to get caught up in our own little worlds. However, conversations like these are a great reminder for us to take a step back and look at the bigger picture. Recognise the position that we are in, and consider the small little things that we can do so that others are able to experience the same opportunities that we do.

TIP #127 – LA For Children with Dr Deborah Wong

June 15, 2023June 15, 2023Leave a Comment

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Whether you love treating kids or not, as dentists, we play such a crucial role in shaping their attitude towards coming to the dentist and taking care of their oral health. Dentistry today is so different to what is was for the older generation, and our goal is to nurture safe and comfortable environments for children so that they are motivated to come in for regular check-ups, to look after their teeth and to let us treat them. And perhaps one of the most important steps, but also the step that can make or break the appointment, is how well you can numb them up.

In this episode, we are joined with Dr Deborah Wong, a paediatric dentist based in Melbourne, to talk all about the LA experience for children. From children’s perception of pain to communication tips and clinical considerations, this is a jam-packed episode filled with wonderful insight you can bring along to your next appointment with your little patients.

TIP #123 – The Pigmented Lesion with Dr Michelle Kang

April 27, 2023April 25, 2023Leave a Comment

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From learning all things oral pathology in school we learn to memorise specific pictures in textbooks that we spot in exams and go ‘Yes! I’ve seen this pathology before!’ however when it comes to actually seeing oral pathologies in the mouth, particularly the pigmented lesion, it can get very confusing between what is normal, and what isn’t, particularly as we learn to look at wide ranging demographics of patients when first starting out. With me again is oral medicine specialist Dr Kang, and we look at what things to be aware of when spotting pigmented lesions, and what actions we can take to making sure we are providing essential care to our patients.

FEATURE #80 – The Big Wide World of Oral Medicine with Dr Michelle Kang

February 27, 2023February 27, 2023Leave a Comment

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In this month’s feature episode we ask Oral Medicine Specialist Dr Michelle Kang about her journey and experience through the big wide world of oral medicine. Topics discussed include the variation in city and rural cases, the experience of travelling and the importance of a good support network to help you through tough times. Please sit back and enjoy!

FEATURE #73 – Marathoning Dentistry, Endodontic Training & PhDs with Dr Aovana Timmerman

July 18, 2022July 16, 2022Leave a Comment

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If there’s one thing I took away from this episode with Dr Aovana Timmerman, it is that dentistry is a marathon not a sprint. It takes discipline, persistence and a consistent pace to maintain motivation and prevent burnout.

In this episode, we talk to Dr Aovana about what it is that drives her passion for continuous learning and growth in dentistry, and the parallels our profession has with physical activity. We reflect on her journey as a general dentist for 10 years, before undergoing endodontic specialist training, research and why she’s now chosen to undertake a PhD.

Dr Aovana is a fantastic role model and really instills confidence in young dentists that there is so much potential for us to do great things – we just have to chase it!

TIP#23: CBCT in Endodontics with Dr Omar Ikram

October 14, 2020October 12, 2020Leave a Comment

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TIP#23: CBCT in Endodontics with Dr Omar Ikram @specialistendocrowsnest

Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) is being used more and more in general dentistry, that 3D perspective is taking some of the guess work out of diagnosis. However, how many times have you been in that situation where you are looking for that MB2, or you’re not getting to where you think length should be, if only there was a way that we could see more of what is going on within the tooth? Well, what about using CBCT midway through our treatment? Dr Omar Ikram, opened my eyes to the appropriate uses of CBCT in Endodontics, for diagnosis of tricky cases, but also to give us that extra bit of information we need advance when we get stuck mid treatment

Specialist Spotlight – Dr Omar Ikram, Endodontist

October 5, 2018October 5, 2018Leave a Comment

Specialist Spotlight – Dr Omar Ikram, Endodontist Dr Omar Ikram is a Specialist Endodontist, practice owner at Specialist Endo Crows […]