Office computer systems for the dental office.

The role of computers in dental practice has dramatically changed over the past 30 years. We have witnessed the progression from administrative roles to complete integration leading to chartless offices. As the dental community gradually adopts this contemporary development, the move to electronic health records is imminent because of upcoming changes in the health care system.

Cutaneous sinus tracts (or emerging sinus tracts) of odontogenic origin: a report of 3 cases.

Three cases are presented in which patients presented with either cutaneous swelling or cutaneous sinus tracts of odontogenic origin. A cutaneous sinus tract of odontogenic origin is a pathway through the alveolar bone that typically begins at the apex of an infected tooth or of an infected portion of the dental alveolus and empties infected material (pus) through the skin. Where as the more common finding of an oral fistula is a pathway from the apical periodontal area of a tooth to the surface of the oral mucous membrane, permitting the discharge of suppurative material.

A retrospective evaluation of 56 patients with oral burning and limited clinical findings.

This study retrospectively evaluated the charts of 56 patients who had been referred to an oral medicine clinic between 1995 and 2004 with oral burning and limited clinical findings. Of the 56 patients, 35 had a final diagnosis of essential burning mouth disorder (EBMD). Five patients with EBMD had a family history of diabetes and two had been diagnosed with late-onset diabetes.