Eighty-nine patients who complained of temporomandibular disorders were examined using a short and long examination procedure. Seventy were females and 19 males. Mean age of the group was 31.53 years, with a range from 11 to 73 years. The agreement between the two examination procedures was tested using the Kappa statistic. This gave a value of 0.876 (P<0.001). This allowed rejection of the hypothesis that the agreement found between the two procedures was due to chance alone.

The aim of this case report is to describe an endodontic procedure performed on a maxillary second premolar with three roots and three root canals, in a South African female patient of African ethnicity. In addition, the report will consider a suitable restorative option for this tooth after completion of the endodontic procedure.

A professional has a job that needs a high level of education and training, and who acts in a manner that conforms to the technical and ethical standards of their profession. They are also expected to adhere to a specific set of duties known as professional ethics and competencies. Many duties are common to most professions such as honesty, integrity, transparency, accountability, objectivity, respectfulness and obedience to the law. In medicine and dentistry there are additional duties related to all aspects of patient care and workplace interactions. In this paper the duties of a doctor will be discussed under the categories of legal duties, business-related duties, professional duties, clinical duties, educational duties, the duty to work, and moral / ethical duties. While it is recognised that practitioners have a right to practice their trade as a result of their professional education and training, they are also obligated to behave in a manner that will uphold the reputation of their discipline. At the same time, patients have the right to expect and to receive the best possible care but need to also take care of their own health and follow the advice given to them by their doctors.

Manufacturer-made light guide (MMLG) tips of light emitting diodes (LEDs) are frequently damaged. Could custom-made light guide (CMLG) tips be suitable replacements? 1.) To compare compressive fracture strengths of resinbased composite specimens photo-polymerized/ cured with a CMLG tip (acrylic-glass) and a MMLG tip (fibre-optic), used interchangeably on a poly-LED curing unit. 2.) To compare the costs of the CMLG tip and the MMLG tip. Two groups of 20 composite cylindrical specimens (4 mm diameter, 4 mm length) were made in teflon moulds. Each light tip cured ten micro-hybrid Z100 TM and ten nano-filled Filtek TM Supreme XTE specimens, (60 seconds each side). Storage was in distilled water at 37°C (±2°C) for 48 hours. Compressive strength testing (MPa) was done at a crosshead speed of 0.5 mm/min using a Bencor Multi-T device in an Instron machine. Student's paired t-test and intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) were applied for analysis and agreement testing. Relative costs of both light guide tips were determined and compared. Only the Z100 TM groups showed significant differences in compressive fracture strength (p = 0.001). The CMLG tip was cheaper.

Dental manufacturers frequently present clinicians with new “cutting edge” materials, devices or technology. These usually come with great promise for bettering the status quo in their practices, and of putting them ahead of their colleagues in the market place. However before succumbing to the advertorial hype, and abandoning their old practices, materials or equipment, practitioners need to evaluate the new offering against the “gold standard” if one exists. This entails comparing it to “the benchmark” practice/ product that is routinely used under reasonable conditions, and answering a number of clinically and scientifically pertinent questions. If they are then confident it has beenthrough extensive trials, the results have been analysed with appropriate tests by independent investigators, and the reporting thereof is accurate, reliable, repeatable, sensitive, specific and clinically applicable, they may consider making practice changes. While it is admirable for clinicians to be open minded and willing to embrace and adapt to modern technology, this should only be done if the change has been proven superior to reliable routine practices. It is incumbent on all practitioners to keep abreast of current trends through the many platforms available. They should also strive towards being life-long learners who are curious, open minded, flexible, willing to learn new skills, and open to adapting their work to embrace advances. This will hopefully lead to practitioners having more fruitful careers, and equip them to provide the best possible service and care to their patients.