Dr. Oakley Attends AAO Winter Conference

As a board member of the Virginia Association of Orthodontists (VAO) and an active member of the American Association of Orthodontists (AAO), Dr. Oakley was invited to attend the AAO Leadership Conference. The conference was held the day before the AAO Annual Winter Conference, so Dr. O took advantage of the opportunity to attend several interesting lectures.

Highlights included

• Molar Hypomineralization – Some people’s molars develop with weakened, or hypomineralized, enamel (the hard outer layer of your tooth). Hypomineralized molars are more prone to getting cavities. Dr. Casas talked about how to identify these teeth and options to restore/manage them.
• White Spots – When patients in braces do not keep their teeth clean, bacteria can weaken the enamel. The weakened enamel looks like white spots on the teeth, and the white spots don’t go away. Several lectures discussed the causes and ways to help patients avoid getting these white spots.
• Mental Health of Children & Teens – We discussed how anxiety and depression can affect dental health. We also learned communication methods to best connect with patients of different ages.
• Early Orthodontic Treatment – Dr. Greenlee gave a presentation updating us on the research that has been done to show the benefits of various types of early orthodontic treatment. He discussed which treatments have been shown to have better outcomes when done early and which ones can have the same outcomes if you wait and do all treatment in one phase.

The AAO is an excellent source of continuing education for orthodontists all over the country and all over the world. Along with keeping orthodontists up to date on all the research that is being done, the AAO also advocates for patient safety and helps fund research and education.

And some fun…

Since the meetings were in Naples area, Dr. Oakley’s family joined her for a weekend of fun! The kids earned their Jr. Ranger badges at the Everglades National Park, where they shared a hiking trail with alligators! They also took a Thousand Islands boat tour to see the natural beauty of the area. A small pod of dolphins joined our tour and swam along side the boat for a few miles!