| news Safe and biologic teeth replacement methods with Ceramic implantology as new frontier In February 2019, the International Academy of Ceramic Implan- tology (IAOCI), which was formed in 2011, will be hosting their 8th Annual Congress in Tampa, Florida, USA. Since their 7th World congress in San Diego in 2018, the Academy has grown in size, popularity and notoriety. Moreover, they have increased their membership by an average of twenty per cent each year. The Academy’s yearly world congress and their events have grown in size and the interest both from doctors and sponsors has followed the same trend. For the IAOCI, ceramic implants are a viable al- ternative and they see ceramic implantology as a new frontier in the pursuit for safe and biologic methods of teeth replacement. Being present and well represented in over thirty events around the globe, the IAOCI has been able to establish strategic partner- ships with many organisations, societies, universities and dental education institutions. For one thing, the Academy participated at the DGOI and Digital Dental Society Congresses in Germany. In addition, the IAOCI was a partner to the “Académie de Chirurgie Guidée” in Paris, France, this past spring, where a presentation was made on the use of guided surgery with ceramic implants. Apart from that, the Academy was invited at the Alexandria Oral Implantology Association Stars Meeting in Egypt where ceramic implantology was introduced for the fi rst time. In the city of Kigali, they were introducing and conducting a ceramic implant workshop at the Pan-African Dental Congress. The Academy has set itself the task to promote science-based education and practice of ceramic implantology: They created the international Zirconia Implant Research Group (ZIRG) which brings together well-known clinicians and scientists in the fi eld of bioceramics and ceramic dental implants. Since zirconia bioce- ramics are putting the established paradigms of titanium implants into question, the Academy’s objective is to initiate and conduct clinically applicable and relevant research aiming to broaden and improve the understanding of zirconia and other implantable bioc- eramics. Furthermore, the IAOCI has entered in an affi liation part- nership with the American Ceramic Society (ACerS) this year which includes an endorsement of the upcoming 8th World Congress by ACerS. Additionally, the Academy was invited to host the fi rst ceramic dental implant workshop at the ACerS 4th Inter national Conference on Innovations in Biomaterials, Biomanufacturing and Biotechnologies (Bio-4), to be held in Toronto, Canada, next July. In close collaboration with their education partner INFINITO Ad- vanced Dental Education Group, the IAOCI endorsed the fi rst ever Latin America ceramic implant congress in Bogota, Colombia, in October 2018. As the next step, the Academy will be co-hosting the fi rst ceramic implant symposium ever held in Brazil. Look- ing to the year ahead, the IAOCI is expecting a continued growth and reach across countries and continents. Join us in Tampa, Florida, USA, this February 14–17, 2019 by registering at the www.iaoci.com/iaoci2019. Dr Sammy Noumbissi, Founder and President of IAOCI. Source: IAOCI Acupuncture could reduce Dental anxiety Fear of the dentist is something some people suffer from more than others. With multiple reasons for dental anxiety, there is, however, limited research on its impact and possible treatment methods. In this regard, researchers from the University of York, UK, have recently reviewed a number of studies on treating dental anxiety with acupuncture. For the systematic review and meta-analysis, six trials with a total of 800 patients were chosen from almost 130 eligible trials. In the studies included, anxiety was shown to be reduced when dental patients were given acupuncture treatment. According to Dr Hugh MacPherson, Professor of Acupuncture Research at the University of York’s Department of Health Sci- ences, the scientifi c interest in the effectiveness of acupuncture both as a stand-alone and as an accompanying treatment to more traditional medications was increasing. “If acupuncture is to be integrated into dental practices, […], then there needs to be more high- quality research that demonstrates that it can have a lasting impact on the patient. Early indications look positive, but there is still more work to be done,” summarised MacPherson. Source: DTI 48 implants 2 2018