ROCK HILL, South Carolina--In order to equip the U.S. dental market with rotary instruments, a KOMET official from Lemgo, Germany, travelled to South Carolina and worked with a clinician and his staff to better understand how American dentistry is practiced.
Antje Meier, KOMET's product manager dental office, spent the day working with Jeff T. Blank, DMD, and the staff at the Carolina Smile Center in Fort Mill, S.C., in 2009. Her goal was to compare and contrast German and American dentistry.
"I observed how Dr. Blank worked on cavity preparations, crown preparations, prophylactic treatments and his use of a laser in a clinical situation," Meier said. "I found the counseling between the dentist and the patient before any clinical treatment particularly interesting."
Meier noted that American dentists use more turbines and ultrasonic devices whereas German dentists use more electric motors and sonic handpieces.
"Instrument management is also totally different because German dental professionals prefer to use stainless-steel bur blocks, where American dental professionals prefer aluminum," Meier added. "In Germany, approximately half of the dentists use a disinfecting device following an autoclave, and Americans use an ultrasonic bath and a gravity sterilization device."
Warren A. White, KOMET USA's chief operating officer, said the information collected by his German colleague will provide his company a better understanding on how KOMET can develop specific products exclusively for the U.S. dental market.
"KOMET has always done an excellent job providing innovative products that cater to our customers needs," White said. "With the information Antje collected, she can provide our research and development departments detailed information on what products will work well in the U.S. market."
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