#MOUTHTAPING April 1, 2024By Lisa Germain, DDS, MScD      What do you say when someone tells you to tape your mouth shut?  “REALLY?” I said to my friend as she handed me a roll of surgical tape.  She explained that it would help me sleep.  My consummate curiosity...

Maxillary Sinusitis of Endodontic Origin January 1, 2024By Lisa Germain, DDS, MScD Odontogenic sinusitis is a broad term used to describe any degree of sinus infection and symptoms that are caused by dental pathology. Among the various multiple dental etiologies are...

The Benefits of Using a Graded Chronic Pain Scale (GCPS) October 1, 2023By Lisa Germain, DDS, MScD Have you ever rendered exceptional treatment for a patient’s painful condition only to have them return reporting no change in symptoms? I have. Yet upon questioning...

Bite Splint Therapy: A Review July 1, 2023By Lisa Germain, DDS, MScD Throughout our careers as dentists, patients who present with chronic orofacial pain disorders might be the most complicated treatment dilemmas we encounter.  Each case presents with a unique...

RUDE! April 1, 2023By Lisa Germain, DDS, MScD I recently read this on an Instagram post: “Dentist here. Today, a patient walked in and inquired at the front desk about getting a dental cleaning. “Sure” said the receptionist. “We will need to have you register as a...

Are we still prescribing too many antibiotics in the dental office? January 1, 2023By Lisa Germain, DDS, MScD The discovery of penicillin was, in truth, a happy accident.  Returning from a vacation on September 3, 1928, Alexander Fleming Professor of Bacteriology at...

Monkeypox...Should Dentists Take Precautions? October 1, 2022By Lisa Germain, DDS, MScD When I first heard about monkeypox, I thought it was a joke.  We were all just recovering from the seclusion of the Covid19 pandemic, ready to renew our practices, as well as our...

If You Can't Save The Tooth, Save The Bone July 1, 2022By Lisa Germain, DDS, MScD When you consider the plethora of bacteria that colonize the oral cavity, it is a wonder that any procedure performed in the mouth could heal uneventfully.  Cultural and molecular...

Isthmus Gifts April 1, 2022By Lisa Germain, DDS, MScD The construction of the Panama Canal, which created a water passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, was a difficult and lengthy process. Early explorers of the Americas and European colonists of central...

Artificial Intelligence in Dentistry Today January 1, 2022By Lisa Germain, DDS, MScD The original TV show, Lost in Space, was an American science fiction series, which originally aired between 1965 and 1968.  The series follows the adventures of the Robinson family, a...