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The science of dentistry is always trying to find new ways to make materials safer, more accessible, easier to produce, and more biocompatible. Dental implants are always being moulded to look like, weigh, and in all other dimensions resemble the thing they are supposed to replace; tooth roots.

A revolutionary breakthrough in bioengineering and the fight against microbes has occurred in Singapore in the first half of February. Finally concluding research started in 2007, with the object of studying the application of polymer and peptide nanoparticles in the field of fighting bacteria, the study has produced a hydrogel that uses electrostatic interactions with the bacteria to destroy their cell walls, thus killing them. The hydrogel is biocompatible and is absorbed by the body once it has killed the bacteria. The application can be used to coat fillings and dental implants, thus fighting off antibiotic resistant bacteria in the mouth.

Scientists at King’s College London are coming up with ways to trigger the teeth’s natural regenerative properties, making dental fillings obsolete.

The advent of rap culture has brought attention to an unlikely facet of dentistry, namely the use of gold and precious metals in dentistry and specifically, in artificial teeth and crowns.

Of all the bizarre techniques that get used in dentistry, the most misunderstood and obscure one is the inlay and onlay.

I have been reading on the internet that amalgam fillings are somehow bad for you, that they cause brain tumors and the like. I have several that have been good to me for the past 15 years, and you can understand I am quite worried. I spoke to my dentist on the phone, and he said that I should consider getting my amalgam fillings replaced with white fillings. I am not a dentist, and did not know what white fillings were so I looked it up on the internet. It turns out that white fillings have BPA in them which cause cancer. I am quite concerned and do not what to do. Must I really get cancer if I want to retain my teeth? Is it not better extracting them and getting a denture at this point?

“I am thinking of getting aesthetic braces, as I work in marketing, but do need to stop going to the dentist for fillings. My teeth are quite crooked. I have heard that different kinds of tooth colored brackets are available. What is the difference between them? I make a decent salary, but some are quite expensive. Is the investment really worth it?

Veneers are usually made of porcelain, which is tougher than teeth, but they can still crack or chip just like natural living teeth or crowns. When this happens, it causes the veneers to become unsightly, and even dangerous, as you can cut your tongue or lips on the edge of the veneer that sticks out from the tooth. You will need a solution fast, but making a new veneer takes about a week, and in the meantime, removing the veneer isn’t much of an option, as the teeth underneath veneers are unsightly. What to do?