Mouth-Body Connection Symposium: Education. Awareness. Activation.

On Saturday, Nov. 11, over 150 PDS-supported dentists, hygienists and medical providers attended the Mouth-Body Connection Symposium at National Support Center in Irvine, Calif. The event was designed to educate PDS-supported clinicians and providers about the latest clinical and technological advancements related to oral-systemic health.

Founder and CEO Stephen Thorne set the tone by framing the current state and future of the Mouth-Body Connection (MBC) in dentistry.

Dr. Carolyn Ghazal, Chair of GP Platform Development and multi-practice owner dentist discussed why the mindset of dentists must shift to include a focus on patients’ overall health. Following Dr. Ghazal, various PDS-supported owner dentists shared their personal stories with the MBC.

Neusha Najafi, DDS, shared a powerful story of her experience as a patient and how an OralDNA Labs test had a significant impact on her life. Ali Shahrestani, DMD, member of the National Clinical Council and Regional Clinical Partner, shared how he was able to help a patient with HbA1c testing.

Multi-practice Owner Dentist Deepika Dhama, DDS, MBC subject matter expert for PDS and member of the National Clinical Council, shared how aMMP-8 testing benefited one of her patient’s lives and led an activity where attendees were able to personally complete an OralFitnessCheck test.

Medical Director for the Prevention Center for Heart and Brain Health and Co-Founder of the BaleDoneen Method Amy Doneen, DNP, discussed the overlap of arterial health with oral health. She also touched on the benefits of oral health care providers collaborating with medical providers to support patients in achieving optimal health.

Following Dr. Doneen’s presentation was a keynote presentation on aMMP-8 and OralFitnessCheck tests by Dirk- Rolf Gieselmann, chairman at Dentognostics AG. Other esteemed PDS-supported MBC subject matter experts shared their implementation and workflow of different tests to guide patients in pursuit of optimal oral health.

By mid-afternoon, Drs. Dhama, Shahrestani and Joan To, DDS, discussed salivary and blood testing and implementation with a focus on aMMP-8, salivary diagnostics and HbA1c testing, including how to implement testing within their practices, sharing the benefits of testing with patients and overcoming patient objections.

Thank you to all who attended and made this event a success.