A journey through orthodontics
“Journey through Orthodontics” was the motto for the XXX Congress of the Portuguese Society of Orthodontics (SPO), which took place between October 24 and 26 at the Super Bock Arena-Pavilhão Rosa Mota Congress Center in Porto. Speaking to Saúde Oral, Helena Agostinho, president of the SPO, introduced the meeting and explained that this concept of a journey through orthodontics came about with the aim of “addressing the various stages of orthodontic treatment and, within these stages, the various techniques involved” in solving a wide range of clinical cases, from the simplest to the most challenging.
Therefore, topics ranging from orthodontics with conventional brackets, self-ligating brackets, treatment with aligners, as well as “the relationship between orthodontics and other areas of dentistry, namely periodontology, facial harmonization, orthognathic surgery,” were covered, said Helena Agostinho, without ever forgetting that therapeutic success always begins with “the first step, which is being able, as professionals, to make the correct clinical diagnosis.”
And at a time when technological advances, particularly the growing incorporation of artificial intelligence into clinical practice, are beginning to transform the way diagnoses are made, the president of the SPO believes it is essential to stress that all these tools, as complementary or auxiliary means of diagnosis, are important, “but we must always focus on the patient in front of us”.
In the words of the president, “we have the best imaging machines and artificial intelligence, but we mustn’t forget that the patient is a person and we are dentists with one priority: the patient. It’s very important to have these tools to help us, but we mustn’t forget that the diagnosis is ours and, as professionals, nothing replaces the clinician’s eye.”
After all, taking this first step in a sustained manner is halfway to achieving the goals of any treatment, which always involve preserving aesthetics, but above all “the function and stability of all orofacial structures”, he adds.
A program packed with training and information
The agenda for the SPO’s 30th annual meeting began on Thursday, the 24th, with pre-congress courses aimed at “increasing the predictability of treatment with aligners and we will also be discussing digital solutions in the treatment of complex cases”, topics given respectively to Enzo Pasciuti, orthodontist and professor at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, in Italy, and Ramon Mompell, specialist at the Department of Orthodontics, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) in the United States.
The program on Friday and Saturday included talks on the use of aligners in adults, by Enzo Pasciuti, and also treatment with aligners in children, with interventions by Gemma López Ruiz, Pedro Costa Monteiro, Soraia Oliveira and Elena Cervino.
Ágata Carvalho and Bilal Koleilat, an orthodontic specialist from Lebanon, discussed the latest advances in the use of brackets and the topics related to surgical treatment and skeletal anchorage were given to Pedro Dominguez, Martín Pedernera, Francisco Azevedo Coutinho, Carlos Faria and Teresa Pinho.
Constanza Cuadrado, a specialist in invisible orthodontics working in Madrid, came to the meeting to talk about the use of aligners in periodontal patients, while Andrea Bono and Alex Bayona brought their approach to temporomandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction.
Facial harmonization and the added value it can bring to patients was the subject of Sofia Lopes’ talk, while Cristina Teixeira will discuss the approach to patients with external root resorption.
Helena Agostinho also took part as a speaker with a lecture on “Back to the future: The power of clinical diagnosis… In the digital age”.
In view of the varied program, the president of the SPO expressed her hope that “at the end of the congress people will leave more enlightened and with greater freedom of thought in relation to the diagnostic tools available and the panoply of treatments that exist to give patients the best treatment,” she said.
Wednesday, 06 November 2024 16:36