Root canal therapy is a conventional treatment for pulpal and periapical diseases. Intracanal interappointment medicaments are important in treatment of pulpal necrosis and apical periodontitis. In addition to killing microorganisms, intracanal medicaments may promote tissue healing and prevent reinfection. The most commonly used intracanal medicaments are calcium hydroxide, chlorhexidine digluconate, and triple antibiotic paste, which can not offer excellent efficacy and safety. The progress of molecular biology and nanotechnology has promoted the development of new antibacterial drugs represented by antimicrobial peptides and nanoparticles. The present article introduces the common used intracanal medicaments in endodontics, and the progress of developing novel medicaments. The development trend of intracanal medicaments in endodontics is also discussed.

Instrument separation is one of the most common complications of root canal treatment, and it is also a clinical problem that plagues many dentists. This article summarized the causes of root canal instrument separation, handling decisions, clinical disposal process, the removal techniques commonly used in clinics, and the post-treatment problems that may arise following root canal treatment. It aimed to investigate the rational disposal options for endodontic instruments that have been separated. In addition, this article also explored the specifications for removing separated instruments, so as to improve the success rate of treatment and increase tooth survival.

Tertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs) are organized aggregates of immune cells that form postnatally in nonlymphoid tissues. TLSs are not found under physiological conditions but arise in the context of chronic inflammation, such as autoimmune diseases, chronic infection, and cancer. In the setting of cancer development, TLSs facilitate the influx of immune cells into the cancer site and have therefore attracted interest as a means of improving anticancer immunity and favorable treatment response in patients. In spite of their presumed importance, the drivers of TLSs formation in cancer and the contribution of these structures to intratumoral immune response remain incompletely understood. In this article, the biology of TLSs and their recent advances in oral cancer research were reviewed.

Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a chronic inflammatory disease of oral mucosa with complex etiology, which belongs to the category of oral potential malignant disorders. At present, drug therapy is the main treatment of OLP. Although a variety of new immunosuppressive agents are widely used in OLP treatment, some cases are still difficult to treat and easy to relapse, and a few cases end up with malignant transformation. Exploring new therapeutic drugs and methods is the key to solve the current dilemma. With the development of modern biotechnology and medical equipment, the biological agents, photodynamic therapy and photobiomodulation therapy are gradually applied to the clinical treatment of OLP. This article reviews the recent literature and provides a brief overview of the treatment progress of OLP.

An intact and healthy dental pulp is crucial to maintain the integrity of tooth. A variety of impairments such as infection and trauma cause irreversible pulp damage, which require removal of pulp tissue and conventional root canal filing. However, this type of treatment fails to restore vital pulp. It is still a clinical challenge that how to regenerate pulp and prolong the lifespan of tooth. Dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) and stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth (SHED) are isolated from the dental pulp of permanent teeth and exfoliated deciduous teeth, respectively. They are more suitable and practical kinds of seed cell sources for dental pulp regeneration due to their superior proliferation capacity, excellent neurogenic / angiogenic differentiation capability, and dental tissue origin. A few preclinical and clinical studies showed that implantation of autologous DPSCs or SHED can re-establish physiological pulp tissue structures. This review article sought to introduce the innate characteristics of DPSCs / SHED and the current state of dental pulp regeneration research.

Temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD) is a disease with a high incidence in dental clinics except for caries, periodontal disease, and malocclusion. Due to the unknown etiology, ununified diagnosis and treatment mode, and unclear diagnosis and treatment outcome, TMD is recognized as an intractable disease. The key of diagnosis and treatment for TMD includes the articular disc, condylar bone, masticatory muscles, and occlusion. Recently, more and more attention has been paid to psychotherapy. However, there have not been established systematic diagnosis and treatment models. Based on the previous unique diagnosis and treatment model, we put forward the 'MOODE’ novel treatment model including disc, occlusion, osseous tissue, muscle, and emotion. We hope to provide a more systematic, comprehensive, and multidimensional diagnosis and treatment model for TMD.

The early orthodontic treatment for malocclusion of children is a hot but controversial topic in orthodontics and even in the entire dental field. Most orthodontic specialists are in favor of the early intervention for malocclusion of children, since it can remove the adverse factors affecting the development of maxillofacial regions and redirect the abnormal growth of jaws, so as to reduce the difficulty and duration of the subsequent orthodontic treatment. However, some scholars suggest that the early orthodontic treatment does not seem to be beneficial. Based on review of the current literature and clinical experience, this article analyzes the etiologies and characteristics of different types of malocclusions, and then discusses the necessity and ideal timing of the early intervention for children. Classical studies and the latest advances of the early orthodontic treatment are summarized here.

The prevalence of dental caries remains high, posing a serious disease burden and a challenging situation for prevention and control. Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have significantly impacted the medical field, particularly through the application of powerful image recognition technology. These advancements have provided new opportunities for developing more accurate diagnostic and risk assessment for caries, thereby enabling more nuanced and effective precision medicine. In this article, the role of AI in the diagnosis and risk prediction of caries, its research progress and prospect were discussed.

Cracked tooth indicates one or more hidden cracks that start from the crown and have a trend of apical extension. Clinicians often face three major challenges related to cracked tooth, which refer to diagnosis, treatment and prognosis. This article discusses the clinical and basic research progress of cracked tooth, in order to provide evidence for making clinical decisions and novel targets of further study.

Taurodontism is a developmental disturbance of pulp chamber, which manifested as a large pulp chamber and short roots with a broad enamel-cenmental junction in the molar. The pathogenesis of taurodontism has not yet been fully elucidated. The main theories about the pathogenesis include atavism, concomitant symptoms of hereditary diseases and abnormal root development. Many biological molecules such as nfi-c, WNT10A and KIF4A have also been proved to be closely related to the occurrence of taurodontism. This review focuses on the etiology of taurodontism in order to promote the clinical knowledge of the diagnosis and treatment of the disease.

Peri-implant buccal soft tissue dehiscence (PSTD) is a common clinical complication after oral implantation. PSTD can be defined as an apical migration of the peri-implant soft tissue for more than 1 mm from the baseline examination (final restoration) or in comparison with the adjacent or contralateral natural tooth, exposing part of the prosthetic components, the implant shoulder or surface. PSTD may jeopardize the aesthetic outcome and increase the incidence of biological complications. The research on PSTD is lacking at present. The definition and classification of PSTD have not been standardized. The treatment for soft tissue dehiscence was controversial. With the increasing aesthetic demands of patients, the treatment of PSTD becomes more and more urgent. Therefore, we reviewed the research progress on peri-implant buccal soft tissue dehiscence. We clearly defined the concept, indications and treatment goals of PSTD, and identified the factors associated with the occurrence of PSTD. We also presented a new classification system of PSTD at single implant site and provided treatment recommendations. Furthermore, we provided several implications for the prevention and control of PSTD to improve patients′ satisfaction.

Implant is one of the key materials in the implant treatment process. Subtractive manufacturing is the main mode of production for implants. In recent years, the emergence and development of metal three-dimensional (3D) printing technology have provided an alternative method for the manufacturing of dental implants. Powder bed melting is one of the metal 3D printing technologies and most widely used in the biomedical field. Among them, selective laser melting (SLM) is the mainstream process of powder bed melting, which has strong comprehensive properties and broad application prospects. It has been found that 3D printing titanium implants have better mechanical properties than castings and are close to forgings, but there is a problem with mechanical properties anisotropy that needs to be optimized to meet the requirements of dental implant materials. In terms of biological characteristics, it has been proved that 3D printing technology does not affect the biocompatibility of titanium materials. Researchers demonstrated that 3D printed titanium implants have similar or even better osseointegration properties than the conventional titanium implants in three aspects: healthy animals, disease animal models and human experiments. Finally, the problems existing in 3D printed titanium implants are summarized and further research is envisioned.