Top ten posts of the year!

This is now the third year of this blog. I have decided to make this year’s last post a simple top ten most popular posts of this year. I hope that you enjoy revisiting them! 

They are in reverse order, just click on the titles to go to the posts.

The Uberisation of Orthodontics.

Martin Kelleher, who is a restorative dentist wrote this guest post.  He gave us his perception of the direction that orthodontics appeared to be taking. I thought that it was very perceptive and we can all learn from his views.  This was read 6,800 times.

What I Wish I Knew Sooner

This was another guest post written by Neal Kravitz a USA based orthodontist. I asked him if I could re-publish this. This is a very reflective post in which Neal outlines how he has changed his practice and thoughts over the years (read 6,900 times)

Expansion with Damon appliances results in buccal bone loss?

In this post, I discussed a paper that evaluated the amount of buccal bone loss secondary to expansion with the Damon appliance. This showed that Damon appliances do not appear to develop the alveolar bone. Probably no surprises here then! (read 6,900 times).

Let’s talk about Acceledent….

This is becoming one of the most popular posts on my blog because it has been picked up by several consumer sites and they link to it.  You probably know what it says, but have another look at it, if you want to refresh your memories. (read 7,000 times this year, total 40,000 times)

Let’s talk about the Carriere Motion appliance….

I think that this one was so popular because I considered a new development in orthodontics that is being widely promoted. I felt that this was unusual because KOLs were discussing this in great detail on videos. They made many claims, and I guess that this appliance can help us with almost anything! (read 7,600 times)

A simple trial of the extraction of primary canines to intercept palatally displaced canines provides us with great information.

This was about a simple, straightforward study that asked a simple question. This team did an excellent job, and it just illustrates what can be done with hard work and determination to solve a clinical problem. (read 8,000 times)

What is better 018 or 022 slot brackets? A really interesting trial.

Another nice clinically relevant trial done by a team based in Scotland. The study was well done and again showed some clinically significant results that showed that there is nothing magical about wires and brackets (read 9,000 times)

What is faster for space closure?  Ni-Ti springs or powerchain?

I think that the main feature of the most popular posts is that they were about trials that addressed common dilemmas. This was a systematic review that looked at the literature concerning space closure. Again an honest review with clinically relevant findings. (read 9,000 times)

Let’s talk about…..Fastbraces

This is an old post that is also being read by patient groups. I think that this illustrates how useful explaining our research findings to patients is becoming.  I am pleased with this one as it was read 9,500 times this year and a total 0f 27,000 times since I published it.

Should general dentists provide orthodontic treatment (revisited)?

Earlier this year “it was all kicking off” about general practitioners doing orthodontics. I had published this one a couple of years ago, and I decided to revisit it. The answer to the question is yes! (read 10,000 times).

Be aware of old retainers

This was the most widely read post at 10,500 hits. Ken Hansen from Gothenburg wrote this one, and it was a simple warning about some problems that he has seen with old retainers. There was a lot of discussion about this because it was a case report on an evidence-based blog. However, I thought that it was interesting, relevant and provided us with some information on an under-researched problem.

That’s about it for this year. You read my blog just over 500,000 times, so thanks for your time. I look forward to starting this up again next year with faster servers and a new website in early spring.

Update on funding

Your response to my request for donations has been fantastic, and we have exceeded my initial target. This will fund new faster servers, a new website and running costs until April of next year. I am very grateful for all your support.

I will start another funding bid to raise £2,500 for the running costs of the blog from April 2019-April 2020.  In the meantime, I will remove the donation requests from blog posts, but I will leave it on the sidebar if anyone wants to make donations.