Our views on Retention have changed over the decades – it is now regarded as a lifetime commitment and Dentist are getting good at letting patients know this from the start. In this episode, I ask Dr Angela Auluck questions from the Protrusive Dental Community as well as talking clinical steps of fiddly fixed retainers.

Protrusive Pearl: The Harridine paper helping to explain that wisdom teeth likely do not cause lower incisor crowding.

In this episode we discussed:

I hope you are enjoying the Straightpril series of episodes! If you liked this episode, you will also enjoy Dahl Technique Part 2 with Tif Qureshi!

When it comes to direct composite restorations, shape is more important than shade. Mastering primary anatomy with well defined line angles is the difference between mimicking nature or ending up with flat white blobs with no definition. In this Group Function I’m joined by Dr Matt Parsons who answers the following question from the Protruserati:

Once you have drawn on the desired line angles, how would you suggest to really define them? When using bur or disc I tend to find I get a result which is rather flat and lacks line angle definition.

Dr Devin

Firstly, if you don’t already follow Dr Matt Parsons on Instagram….you will now, and therefore you’re welcome. It’s dental porn.

If you have any other questions that would make a good group function, please do message me on @protrusivedental Instagram page or the Facebook Page

If you enjoyed this, you will like my 3 reflections on a Composite Veneer case.

How does Orthodontist Mandeep Gosal feel about GDP ‘Alignment Only Orthodontics’ – in this hilarious episode (where I compared Orthodontists to builders) Mandeep ‘Gos’ shares his thought provoking views on how Orthodontics should be carried out (and how it shouldn’t!)

This episode will be ‘unlisted’ on YouTube so it cannot be searched. For lots of reasons.

Protrusive Dental Pearl: For better portrait photos (Extra-oral) – point the ring flash to the ceiling! I use F8.0, ISO 800 with my Canon 60D body, 100mm lens and Canon Ring flash. This is the difference in lighting compared to point the ring flash at the face:

One of the best bits from this episode I thought was Gos’ description of the 3 types of consent being carried out for Orthodontics. Which one did you identify with?

If you enjoyed Mandeep Gosal’s style of teaching, do check out his Orthodontic course for GDPs.

If you enjoyed this episode, you will also like 5 Lessons from Lincoln Harris where we also discuss consent in Dentistry.

We don’t refer all our extractions, root canals and crowns – then surely there is a role of GDPs to carry out Orthodontics? In the last 10 years we have seen a boom in GDP Orthodontics and much of this is ‘Alignment Only Orthodontics’. Protruserati, welcome to Straightpril!

Sponsor: Did you check out the Mini Smile Makeover course? You can attend again in the future at no additional cost – THAT’s awesome!

Protrusive Dental Pearl: I use the Beauty and the Beast Mirror to ask patients what they hate most about their smile. It injects personality and humour – but you also find out exactly what the patient does not like about their smile!

If you enjoyed this episode, you should also check out Are Class I Molars Important? With Dr Mo Almuzian

Canine guidance is overrated. Read that again. Crazy, I know. In this episode, one of my mentors Dr Riaz Yar explains the rationale of a functional occlusion whereby the pillars are the central incisor and the first molar.

I found some similarities to the Posterior Guided Occlusion (click to listen to the episodes by Dr Andy Toy) in that we place too much emphasis on canine guidance.

Protrusive Dental Pearl:

There is no joy in mediocre Dentistry

Dr John Kois

I hope you find this episode stimulating – and if you are a true protruserati, you will be grateful for another point of view AND NOT be upset that we all can’t agree with each other, haha!

Stay tuned for STRAIGHTPRIL!

Did you miss out on SplintCourse enrollment? It will be relaunching in June – click here to register for the launch offer

Check out Dr Riaz Yar’s courses here – his book will also be launching in Q4 2021 – watch this space!

If you enjoyed this episode, check out Posterior Guided Occlusion with Andy Toy!

This is THE most common question I get – ‘Jaz, can you just tell me which camera to buy for dental photography, I am so confused!’

I’m no mug when it comes to Dental photography, but I wanted to get a real expert to help answer this important question. I present to you Alessandro Devigus from Switzerland who owns the @dentist.camera Instagram page (which I love).

I was shocked that he recommended a Mirrorless set up – but I totally understand his rationale. Here are the links to the products he mentions:

Nikon Z50 Mirrorless Camera Body – ensure the kit comes with a FTZ Nikon adaptor so it works with the lens
Nikon 85mm Macro Dx Lens
Mieke Ring Flash for Nikon

Budget setup for excellent Dental Photography

A Canon or Nikon Full Frame camera, with a 100mm macro lens and 2 x flashes mounted on a bracket – pick your favourite brand eg Nikon or Canon. It’s all good!

If you enjoyed this episode, you may also enjoy the IMPORTANCE of taking photos in your Dental Journey, check it out!

You place some veneers and your patient leaves in tears of joy. Imagine getting a letter a few weeks later to tell you that the patient now HATES her veneers and would like a full refund. That is soul destroying stuff, and it’s NOT about the money!

Within the context of this specific scenario where 6 veneers were placed, we discuss:

A. How this could have been prevented

B. How to handle the veneers that are ‘bulky at the gumline’

C. How to handle this refund request…!

I want to thank Dr Manrina Rhode for yet again adding so much value for the Protruserati

You can check out her course on Designing Smiles website

If you liked her episode and want a full hour of Veneers from preps to Temps, check out Everything Veneers with Manrina Rhode

I gave Manuela Rodrigues one task: to reduce the stress levels of Dentists and the Dental team who listen to this episode.

I know what you’re thinking…the whole positive mental attitude thing goes straight out of the window when a file has separated or the palatal root of the upper molar has been swallowed by the sinus.

This is why I wanted Manuela to make this a highly relevant to the daily stressful scenarios we face. How can we make our profession less stressful, Manuela?!

I pitched to her 3 different scenarios:

As Manuela promised, you can get 25% off her Mindfulness in Dentistry training by using the code ‘protrusive’

Do follow Manuela @mindful.dentistry on Instagram

If you enjoyed this episode, you will like 10 Habits of Highly Successful Dentists

‘What on earth is Clubhouse?’ I hear you ask. Well, it’s kind of like being in a Whatsapp room with Richard Branson…and instead of typing you’re all just leaving live voicenotes. It’s like a Live Podcast and you get to contribute (sometimes). It’s also like a cult – it’s super addictive and invitation-only (at the time of publishing this).

My favourite thing about Clubhouse is that sometimes you’re not in the right state or environment to be on video – this audio-only platform has gained a lot of popularity!

I have seem some great Rooms (like a Whatsapp group) within Dentistry where a lot of knowledge bombs have been dropped. There is something beautiful about Live content that is difficult to get a replay for – the FOMO factor is real!

In this Interference Cast I am joined by Kevin Rose who helps drive better conversations in Dentistry.

TLDR: I think Dentistry has a home in Clubhouse – we can learn and share great content (live podcast, right?) – we can also use it to change public perceptions of Dentistry.

It’s probably not going to land you many patients in your chair, if that’s why you’re on it. You need to see a bigger picture!

Two ‘TMJ Queens’ in Two Days – another tribute to International Women’s Day last week and what better than having Dr Priya Mistry from USA who has limited her practice to the treatment of Temporo-Mandibular Disorders.

I first discovered Dr Priya Mistry’s fantastic content on YouTube – I really enjoyed her style of content presentation. I quickly saw her grow on this platform and help so many of the public with their TMD concerns.

I realised that a lot of what she has to share is not just helpful for patients, but is really useful and helpful for Dentists, especially as many of us find the TMJ to be a mystical joint! I probe Dr Mistry about her full examination protocol for a typical TMD patient so we can gain insight in to how Dentists limited to TMD get to a diagnosis – arguably the trickiest part!

Some parts of her specialised exam is already familiar to us – the usual palpation and range of motion measuring. Other parts are very different, such as measuring leg-length and really analysing the postural chain. Also, there are a lot of pre-appointment questionnaires that patients need to fill in advance of the appointment.

The main take-home from this episode is to figure out when to treat TMD patients yourself in practice, and when to refer to someone like Dr Mistry. I enjoyed her ‘4 levels of TMD’ which was very easy to follow.

If you enjoyed this episode, do check out the episode with Dr Gurs Sehmi where I probe him for the full protocol examination for his Smile Makeover treatments!

Enrollment for SplintCourse ends on Friday (thanks for all of you who joined from around the world!) I look forward to catching you on the Monthly Live Webinars: