The Winning Team: The Healthcare Provider & The Clinical Laboratory

Posted on April 12, 2024April 12, 2024 by Diane Larson RDH, BSDH

Decades, possibly even a century, of periodontal research have led to modern-day periodontology. This research supports identifying the bad guys; reducing their presence should lead to less or no disease. This simple equation has proven to be successful, yet there are still more questions to be asked and answers to be discovered. Before clinical laboratory testing, healthcare providers could only assume the presence of these culprits in periodontal disease. Today, however, we can confiden...

An Introduction to the History of Clinical Laboratory Testing

Posted on October 13, 2023October 13, 2023 by Diane Larson RDH, BSDH

Clinical laboratory testing isn’t something newly developed in the era of the COVID pandemic. You have been a patient throughout your life, and I can guarantee there has been a laboratory test performed on you at least once, if not every time you are seen by a medical doctor. Hippocrates, in early 300 BC, was noted to use rudimentary tests on human fluids. However, just over a century ago the first clinical laboratories appeared in modern countries such as the United Kingdom and the United S...

Consumer-Friendly Lab Reports

Posted on October 6, 2023October 5, 2023 by Kimberly Babauta, RDH, BS, BCPA

Clinical lab reports have come a long way since their inception. In the past, lab reports were typically written for healthcare professionals. They often contained medical jargon and technical terms that were difficult for patients to understand. However, with the advent of new technology as well as the increasing importance of patient-centered healthcare, the trend towards more consumer-friendly lab reports has emerged. One key factor triggering the trend towards consumer-friendly lab re...

The At-Home Collection Kit

Posted on September 30, 2022September 29, 2022 by Diane Larson RDH, BSDH

The previous blogs “Is the Medical Model Right for Your Practice?” Part 1 and Part 2 by Dr. Michael Goldberg are an excellent opportunity to highlight a useful feature OralDNA® Labs has added to our client resources. The At-Home Collection Kit is an opportunity for you to explore telehealth, or at a minimum provide added convenience for your patients who may need to travel distances to receive your higher quality of care. This resource allows you to ship a collection kit direct to your patient’s...

Article Overview with OralDNA

Posted on December 17, 2021December 17, 2021 by Ronald C. McGlennen, MD

Have you ever finished reading an article and thought to yourself “What?!”. In this new series of blogs/vlogs, Dr. Ronald McGlennen will review articles of relevance to help answer your questions and offer his additional expertise on the topic. If you come across an article that you would like Dr. McGlennen’s insight on, please contact info@trendsinsalivarytesting.com or click here. https://youtu.be/wtulmQ9ubAE

Periodontal Inflammation Primes the Systemic Innate Immune Response

Posted on November 20, 2020May 20, 2021 by Ronald C. McGlennen, MD

This week, Dr. Ronald McGlennen - President & Medical Director of OralDNA® Labs provides a review of the recently published article "Periodontal Inflammation Primes the Systemic Innate Immune Response” written by N. Fine, J.W. Chadwick, C. Sun, K.K. Parbhaker, N. Khoury, A. Barbour, M. Golberg, H.C. Tenebaum, and M. Glogauer. This article appears in the Journal of Dental Research, October 2020. The complete article can be accessed here. Enjoy the VLOG and please feel free to share any...

COVID-19: A Primer for the Dental Professional, Part 2

Posted on June 5, 2020May 20, 2021 by Ronald C. McGlennen, MD

Tools for the Dental Professional: Testing for SARS-CoV-2 In response to the pandemic, the community of laboratories from across the globe have worked to develop new tests to diagnose COVID-19 and to identify persons who have successfully survived the infection. There are then 2 types of tests for these two conditions. To diagnose COVID-19 a sample of nasal or oral secretions are collected to look for viral RNA, evidence of the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in that person. In short, laborat...

Salivary Diagnostics: Your Molecular X-Ray

Posted on March 22, 2019May 20, 2021 by Diane Larson RDH, BSDH

According to Merriam-Webster, one of the definitions of technology is a manner of accomplishing a task especially using technical processes, methods, or knowledge. This definition rings true for the introduction of clinical laboratory testing for the health care professions. It was noted in research by the NIH, “…it was not until 1896 that the first clinical laboratory was opened, a twelve-foot-by-twelve-foot room equipped at a cost of $50 at Johns Hopkins Hospital.”1 So for over a century, ...

My Visit to OralDNA® Labs

Posted on March 1, 2019May 20, 2021 by Barb Krueger, RDH, MA

Have you ever wondered what happens to your patient’s saliva sample once it arrives at OralDNA® Labs? Many PDS®-supported offices have been using OralDNA® Labs to analyze the saliva of their patients, relative to the patient’s periodontal infection. This service gives them more information about the types and severity of a patient’s infection, which is the cause of periodontitis. Additionally, however, it tells us something about the bacterial load and a patient’s inflammatory response, w...

Caries Risk Assessment Duo: The Canary System® and OraRisk® Caries

Posted on December 21, 2018May 20, 2021 by Jennifer Rooney, BSDH

In the past, controlling or treating dental caries meant restoring all areas of decay. After which, the patient was believed to be “caries controlled” until something new developed. We now know that this thinking is flawed. Filling or restoring caries does not treat the disease, only its effects on the tooth. In 2001, the National Institute of Health defined caries as a disease resulting in the destruction of tooth structure by acid forming bacteria found in dental plaque in the presence ...