salivary diagnostics

OraBiologics: Supporting Patients Through Salivary Testing, Education, and Guided Care

Posted on by Kim Blaise
As salivary diagnostics continue to play a growing role in periodontal and oral–systemic care, one of the ongoing challenges for clinicians is ensuring patients fully understand their results—and are prepared to take meaningful next steps. OraBiologics was created to support this exact need. Rooted in biologic dentistry and oral–systemic health, OraBiologics is a member-based platform designed to help individuals better understand the connection between oral pathogens and whole-body he...
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Bleeding Gums Aren’t Just a Hygiene Issue – They’re Often a Diagnostic Opportunity

Posted on by Tosha Kozloski, RDH
For a long time, bleeding gums were treated as a home care conversation. Brush better. Floss more consistently. Let’s keep an eye on it… but what are we actually waiting for? That’s how most of us were taught. And honestly, it’s exactly how I practiced early in my career too. In 2008, when I began using salivary diagnostics alongside phase-contrast microscopy, something shifted for me. For the first time, I wasn’t making educated guesses. I could identify which microbes were prese...
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When Data Changes Minds: How Chlorhexidine Irrigation and Non-Surgical Laser Therapy Transformed a Resistant Microbiome in a Reluctant Patient

Posted on by Robert Benavides DDS
    A patient presented for a new patient exam to our practice after many years of “routine” and “regular” cleanings elsewhere. Although clinical and radiographic findings indicated chronic infection and the need for comprehensive non-surgical therapy including scaling and root planing, irrigation, and bacterial decontamination, the patient declined adjunctive care and requested to receive scaling alone. Local anesthesia was administered, and scaling and root planning w...
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Virtual Interview with Dr. Rob Frey

Posted on by Rob Frey, DDS, MPH
Dr. Ron McGlennen: Tell us a little bit about yourself and how you started in your profession. What is your driver to do what you do? Dr. Rob Frey: I have a passion for blending esthetic dentistry, functional dentistry, and whole-body health. My journey into dentistry started with a desire to work in healthcare in a way that combined science, artistry, and meaningful human connection. I was drawn to the idea that dentistry allows you to not only restore health, but also confidence, comfort,...
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The Secret Weapon – Part One

Posted on by Michael Goldberg DMD
Every practice owner I know is chasing the same three outcomes—whether they admit it out loud or not. Better patients. Higher acceptance of the right care—free from insurance constraints. And referrals that happen naturally, because marketing has become expensive, exhausting, and unpredictable. Yet most practices are still reaching for the same familiar tools to get there: Better scripts. Prettier brochures. Tighter financial conversations. Hel...
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Throwback: Words of Wisdom from Dr. John Kempton

Posted on by John Kempton DDS
Every patient is different. Overcoming a patient’s obstacles to treatment may take some finesse. The diagnosis and treatment plan are typically the easier task. In this series, we have asked the experts from our Protocol Directory, “How would they help the patient overcome their obstacle(s)?” When we asked Dr. John Kempton from LAUNCH Oral Systemic Health to respond to “That’s more than I was expecting,” here is his approach. When patients respond to our consultation with “That’s more ...
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RDH Spotlight: Maiya White, RDH

Posted on by Maiya White, RDH
  Dr. McGlennen: What inspired you to pursue a career in dental hygiene, and what do you find most rewarding about it? Maiya: I became inspired by the dental hygiene profession when I realized hygienists are the link between oral and systemic health, fusing the line between the Mouth-Body Connection. Helping patients achieve the best overall health is the most rewarding part of my career. Dr. McGlennen: How has incorporating salivary diagnostics into your practice changed the way...
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The Mouth Is Talking. Are We Listening?

Posted on by Dr. Valerie Kanter, DMD, MS; Dr. Mary Ellen Chalmers, DMD, IFMCP; Dr. Staci Whitman, DMD, IFMCP
For decades, dentistry has focused solely on what we can see. Lesions, pockets, radiolucencies, and wear patterns have guided our treatment planning and shaped the way we understand disease. These visual cues are essential, but what if the most important data about our patients’ health has been communicated all along through the oral microbiome and revealed through… SPIT? At the Institute for Functional Dentistry (IFD), we teach dentists systems biology and timeline medicine, creating a s...
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Most of My Career, I Measured the Wrong Thing (And How OralDNA Forced Me to Change My Scorecard) – Part Two

Posted on by Jonathan Evans
Last week, we explored the awakening that comes from seeing the unseen. This week, Jonathan dives into the hard truth: a technically perfect Scaling and Root Planing (SRP) doesn’t always equal success. We’ll see how embracing an outcome-focused mindset changes not just the approach to care, but the results and the satisfaction hygienists and patients alike experience. The Hard Truth: Great SRP With Bad Outcomes Is Not a Win This is where my mindset truly flipped. I had to admit to myself: ...
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Most of My Career, I Measured the Wrong Thing (And How OralDNA Forced Me to Change My Scorecard) – Part One

Posted on by Jonathan Evans
For most of my 32 years as a hygienist, my “success” lived in my treatment notes. How many quads of Scaling and Root planing (SRP) did I do this week? How much calculus did I remove? How clean did those roots look and feel when I finished? If I walked out of a room drenched in sweat with polished roots and detailed charting, I felt like I’d done my job. Box checked. Next patient. But there was always this low-level itch in the back of my mind: If I’m doing such great work, why do...
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