Artificial intelligence has been making its way into dentistry. New AI software products have emerged that could enhance dentists’ ability to detect tooth decay, cavities or bone loss and propose treatments before dental health worsens. The FDA already has approved eight such AI products, with more to come, and some large corporate dental chains have already begun using them.
In this webinar, we went over how these products work, their benefits and limitations, what’s on the horizon, and how to cover this growing field. Roya Zandparsa, a dentist who lectures at Tufts and Harvard universities, and Casey Ross, national technology correspondent for STAT, discussed how the products work and are being incorporated into dental care, what we might expect in the future, and how to report on this trend.
Karen Blum is AHCJ’s health beat leader for health IT. She’s an independent health and science journalist based in the Baltimore area. She has written for publications such as the Baltimore Sun, Pharmacy Practice News, Clinical Oncology News, Clinical Laboratory News, Cancer Today, CURE, AARP.org, General Surgery News and Infectious Disease Special Edition; covered numerous medical conferences for trade magazines and news services; and written many profiles and articles on medical and science research as well as trends in health care and health IT. She is a member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA) and chairs its Virtual Education Committee; and a member of the National Association of Science Writers (NASW) and its freelance committee.
Roya Zandparsa, D.D.S., M.Sc., D.M.D., F.I.C.D., is a clinical professor and biomaterials course director at the Department of Prosthodontics at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine and a lecturer at the Department of Restorative Dentistry and Biomaterials Sciences at Harvard School of Dental Medicine. She also is vice president of innovation and development at Qualitas Dental Partners Organization, the founder & CEO of Expert Dental Advisory, the president-elect of the American Association of Women Dentists, the past president of American Academy of Dental Science, and a Fellow of the International College of Dentistry.
Casey Ross is a national technology correspondent at STAT. His reporting examines the use of artificial intelligence in medicine and its underlying questions of safety, fairness, and privacy. Before joining STAT in 2016, he wrote for the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Boston Globe, where he worked on the Spotlight Team in 2014 and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.
