Together with those from the UK, delegates came from across the globe from countries including Dubai, France, Oman, Jordan, Hong Kong, Greece, Ireland, the Netherlands and USA.
The programme for the day consisted of keynote lectures from leading experts, the presidential ceremony, presentation of prizes and the prestigious lifetime contribution to the specialty award. There was also a trade exhibition and opportunities for networking.
Outgoing President, Mike Wapplington, handed over the Chains of Office to BS Chong, the society’s new president. “I am looking forward to an exciting year with the British Endodontic Society,” said Chong. “I hope, with the support of enthusiastic and energetic council members, to promote the aims of the society and ensure that our activities, events and initiatives are accessible to all, not just specialists.”
The first keynote speaker was Hal Duncan from Trinity College, Dublin, whose presentation was entitled ‘New visions for the vital pulp – do we need to keep digging a hole for ourselves?’ In brief, Hal highlighted concerns over the destructive nature of dental treatment which has led to the examination of novel methodologies and development of regenerative biologically-based treatments for the damaged dental pulp. He spoke of the exciting opportunities that exist for minimally-invasive treatment procedures, which help maintain pulp vitality, and the development of a new generation of dental materials targeted at biological processes, which promote repair.
Hal was followed by Christos Boutsioukis from ACTA, The Netherlands, on the subject of ‘Root canal irrigation – current focus and challenges’. Christos described how modern irrigation techniques very frequently promise miracles in terms of irrigant penetration, cleaning and disinfection of the root canal system. However, he stated that there are only a few independent clinical studies evaluating their performance and their results are often unfavourable. Moreover, based on currently available evidence, the increasingly popular idea of minimally-invasive root canal preparation seems incompatible with most of the available irrigation techniques.
After the lunch break, Professor Josette Camilleri, from Malta, covered ‘Current concepts and future directions in root canal obturation’. She highlighted the importance of root canal obturation in clinical endodontics. She described how the materials used inside the root canal need to be optimised and the technique used has to be specific to the materials employed. Professor Camilleri described how the newer hydraulic sealers are promising but that further research is necessary to ensure that they are utilised well and their properties are enhanced during use.
The final presentation, titled ‘Surgical endodontics – the limits of understanding and achievement’, was given by Professor Bill Saunders, dean of the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh. Before starting his presentation, the society surprised Professor Saunders by presenting him with a certificate of appreciation in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the specialty of endodontics.
Among the delegates was a group of students from Liverpool University Dental Hospital. Rob Jacobs, a specialist trainee, commented, “Today was very interesting and informative. I especially liked listening to Hal Duncan – he was inspiring through his enthusiasm and humour. He makes me really think about my daily work and how I can fine-tune my clinical management.”
“We were delighted with the turnout,” Annabel Thomas, chief operations officer at BES. “The meeting was so popular that we had to generate a waiting list and the feedback afterwards was excellent. We are pleased that our events attract interest across the dental profession.”