Philips Sonicare Unveils Next-Generation Sonicare Technology Designed for a Gentle, yet Effective Clean to Ease the Switch from Manual Brushing

 

Recently Philips Sonicare was kind enough to send me one of their new Sonicare 7400 brushing systems.  I've been using the Sonicare Prestige 9900 for a while and I really enjoy that system, however I wanted to give the 7400 system a spin and see how I liked it.  I also wanted to evaluate a couple of things.  The first was, how does the 6800 system perform?  I can now say from personal experience, I really like it.  It performed well, was easy to use, and left my teeth feeling great.

The second thing I wanted to check was how easy it would be to pair with my phone.  When I started using the Prestige 9900 I began using the Sonicare app on my phone to monitor my brushing habits.  I was curious how easy it would be to change the app to recognize the 7400.  I'm happy to say the process was simple.  All I had to do in the app was tap "My Products" and tap "Connect a new toothbrush".  The app recognized the 7400 and connected to it immediately.  Being a die hard tech-head, I've become really devoted to the Sonicare app and was glad that I could use it with the 7400 System.

Today I've got news that the new Philips Sonicare 6300 and 7400 models are available for purchase.  You can read below for all the details.

Delivering a thorough yet gentle clean, the new Philips Sonicare 6300 and 7400 electric toothbrushes empower patients to feel the care, supporting healthier smiles with every use.

Royal Philips, a global leader in health technology, today unveils the Philips Sonicare 6300 and Philips Sonicare 7400 electric toothbrushes, ushering in a new era of oral care with Next-Generation Sonicare technology. Designed with dental patients in mind, these innovations go beyond standard cleaning. They’re engineered to help patients feel the care with every brush, delivering a powerful yet gentle clean, real-time guidance and personalized brushing tips, ultimately helping patients achieve healthier teeth and gums with confidence.

As the newest breakthroughs in oral care innovation, Philips Sonicare 6300 and Philips Sonicare 7400 gently power the bristle tips to deliver a consistently deep clean, reaching every corner of the mouth with precision and care.

Key shared features include:

• Philips Sonicare All-in-One brush head: Removes up to 30x more plaque in hard-to-reach areas in Clean Mode versus a manual toothbrush
• Visual pressure sensor: Helps protect gums by lighting up when users apply too much pressure
• 2-minute SmarTimer and Brush Pacer: Provide guided brushing sessions to help build better
• brushing habits
• Brush head replacement reminder: Signals to users when it’s time to replace their brush heads
• for optimal hygiene and effectiveness
• Three brushing intensities: Adjust intensities to Low, Medium or High depending on comfort
• level
• 21-day battery life: Delivers 21 days of regular brushing on a single charge
• Travel cases: Protects the toothbrushes so users can carry with them everywhere

Philips Sonicare 6300 and Philips Sonicare 7400 are also individually tailored to patients with different needs, providing innovative oral care solutions for everyone.

Philips Sonicare 6300 features:

• Tailored for sensitive teeth and gums with gentle cleaning
• 2 Cleaning Modes: Clean, Sensitive

Philips Sonicare 7400 features:

• Designed for gum health and advanced personalization
• 4 Cleaning Modes: Clean, Sensitive, White, Gum Health
• App Connectivity: Connects to the Philips Sonicare app, which has technology that interprets
• sensor-based data from the toothbrush to offer patients personalized brushing
• recommendations – such as feedback on missed areas, brushing pressure and duration – based
• on their brushing habits

“Many patients worry that power toothbrushes might be too harsh for their teeth and gums, leading them to stick with manual toothbrushes they believe are ‘good enough.’ However, manual brushing can often miss plaque in hard-to-reach areas or fail to deliver consistent pressure,” said Matina Vidalis, Senior Marketing Director, Consumer & Professional Oral Healthcare, Philips Personal Health North America. “Thoughtfully designed to ease the transition from manual to power brushing, Philips Sonicare 6300 and 7400 offer gentle yet effective care for sensitive teeth and gums. These innovations empower dental professionals not only to elevate their standard of care, but also to confidently guide patients in making the switch, helping them achieve a superior clean and healthier gums with ease.”

Contact your local sales representative or visit PhilipsOralHealthcare.com for information on how you can offer Philips Sonicare 6300 and Philips Sonicare 7400 to patients in your practice.

About Royal Philips

Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA) is a leading health technology company focused on improving people's health and well-being through meaningful innovation. Philips' patient- and people-centric innovation leverages advanced technology and deep clinical and consumer insights to deliver personal health solutions for consumers and professional health solutions for healthcare providers and their patients in the hospital and the home. Headquartered in the Netherlands, the company is a leader in diagnostic imaging, ultrasound, image-guided therapy, monitoring and enterprise informatics, as well as in personal health. Philips generated 2024 sales of EUR 18.0 billion and employs approximately 67,300 employees with sales and services in more than 100 countries. News about Philips can be found at www.philips.com/newscenter.  

ADA Launches AI-powered Credentialing Solution, Urges Plan Administrators to Join Effort

 

Here's another good example of where AI is working in dentistry in a non-clinical application.  I'm not ready to turn my life over to our robot overlords yet, but there are definitely non-clinical ways that AI can help us manage our data.

One of those things is coming to dentistry from the ADA.  I know I've mentioned the ADA a lot in posts recently, but one of the reasons for that is their increasing communication with members.  In the past 6-12 months the ADA has done a much better job of keeping members informed, not only about internal matters, but about the profession in general and how they are working to make it better.  This post deals with one of those areas where AI can be a huge benefit to doctors.  No one wants *more* paperwork in their office and this should help eliminate some.

For those that are unaware of this, for the past seven years, the ADA has been offering a service called CAQH the works with third party payers in credentialing.  Almost every dental insurance company wants to make sure that the doctors they work with are licensed and capable of providing standard of care treatment.  To ensure that, doctors are required to go through a credentialing process that involves submitting things like their state license, NPI, DEA registration, and more.

Of course things change so re-credentialing is required on a regular basis.  Going through that process for several companies can be arduous and tedious.  To help cut the redundancy of going through the process with every company, the ADA set up the CAQH Provider Data Portal.  Instead of every dentist sending the same info to every insurance company they deal with, dentists can store their data in the portal and companies can pull it from there.  That means a doctor only needs to update their info as required by CAQH (every 120 days) and not go through the same process for every company.

Now the ADA has partnered with LightSpun to bring AI into the process.  According to the ADA:

“By integrating advanced AI technology through our collaboration with LightSpun, the ADA can now deliver a solution that builds on the strong dentist utilization of CAQH while introducing AI-powered automation to complete primary source verification and onboarding, significantly reducing administrative burden, duplicative work, and credentialing delays.”

 The ADA has reached out to dental insurance plan administrators urging they accept credentialing through the new service.  To read the full article from ADA News, you can follow this link.

 To learn more about the ADA Delecgated Credentialing Service and the ADA-CAQH Provideer Data portal, you can find all of that info here.  

 

Pac-Dent, Inc. Acquires Ackuretta Technologies

 

As everyone that reads the blog knows, I'm a big fan of 3D printing.  So when I hear of industry news dealing with that slice of dentistry, I want to make sure that all of you know about it as well.

The folks at PacDent are a big player in the world of 3D printing resins.  At my last count they make sixteen different types for different applications.  They are amazing resins and are used by many in the field who have been at this longer and are better at it than I am.  As I've worked on my podcast this year, I've been lucky enough to interview some of the premier 3D printing dentists and many of them are using PacDent resins.

However, up to this point PacDent has only been in the resin side of things, now comes the news that PacDent has acquired the 3D printer hardware company Ackuretta.  This will mean that PacDent now will have a full line of turnkey systems for doctors that are moving into 3D printing.  One of the best things about a situation like this is that a company which sells both the printer and the resins that it uses works carefully to completely validate the resins.  What that means to the customer is that they are assured the resin and the printer are validated to work together to provide the best results.  For doctors who don't like to tinker, a situation like this is what I recommend.

Here's the news from PacDent:

Pac-Dent, Inc., a global manufacturing leader in preventive care, infection control, Rodin® dental 3D printing resins along with 3D printing–oriented restorative materials, today announced the acquisition of Ackuretta Technologies (established in 2013), a Taiwan-based pioneer in dental laboratory and chairside 3D printing hardware. This strategic move unites two innovation leaders and accelerates Pac-Dent’s vision of delivering an open, interoperable ecosystem that connects world-class materials, intelligent software, and a full range of ecosystem hardware—including printers, companion devices, and workflow enablers—to make 3D printing seamless, user-friendly, and accessible for clinicians and labs worldwide.

Pac-Dent has made significant investments in R&D, partnering with universities and institutions worldwide on AI-powered dental solutions. With Ackuretta’s printer platform and ALPHA AI CAM software, Pac-Dent will deliver cutting-edge solutions for both chairside and dental laboratories, integrating workflow intelligence and advanced automation. While full design automation is still under development, Pac-Dent’s strong progress in data acquisition and workflow intelligence positions the company to set new standards in digital dentistry.

“The most important aspect of this acquisition is how it amplifies our open-system vision,” said Daniel Wang, CEO of Pac-Dent. “By combining best-in-class materials, intelligent software, and versatile hardware, we are building the most accessible and adaptable digital dentistry platform on the market. Just as important, we are thrilled to welcome Ackuretta’s outstanding international team—spanning Taiwan, France, Germany, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, South America, and the Middle East. Their expertise strengthens our innovation pipeline, enhances product reliability, and expands global customer support.”

Open-System Commitment: 

Pac-Dent emphasized that its ecosystem will remain open-system by design. The addition of Ackuretta provides customers with a validated in-house hardware option, but Pac-Dent will continue to support and collaborate with other open-system hardware manufacturers, with many leading dental 3D printer brands already validated and an ongoing program to expand supported platforms. Dealers and distributors can rely on Pac-Dent’s materials and workflows being validated across multiple platforms—ensuring freedom of choice, optimal clinical outcomes, and a sustainable, partner-friendly approach to digital dentistry.

Customer Support & Service Readiness: 

As part of the integration, Pac-Dent is preparing front-line technical support in North America for Ackuretta printers with clear escalation paths to engineering, readily available spare parts through U.S. distribution, and a quick-start knowledge base covering setup, calibration, validated resins, and common fixes. Training resources will help clinicians and labs move quickly from installation to validated production. Pac-Dent’s support organization is also being briefed to guide customers toward Rodin-validated workflows and recommended accessories, ensuring each interaction improves outcomes and efficiency.

With Ackuretta joining Pac-Dent, clinicians and labs can expect expanded service, training, and technical support, along with a faster cadence of integrated end-to-end solutions—from data acquisition, processing, and CAM, to printing, post-processing, and 3D-oriented restorative materials—all delivered through a globally scalable, partner-friendly model.

Beyond this acquisition, Pac-Dent is advancing several complementary initiatives, including the launch of new digital workflow platforms, partnerships to strengthen design and some metal printing capabilities, and ongoing efforts in AI-driven data acquisition and chairside treatment solutions. Together, these initiatives reinforce Pac-Dent’s role as a long-term partner for both labs and clinicians in the open-system digital era.

Global Presence & Manufacturing Footprint:

Pac-Dent maintains its U.S. headquarters in Brea, California, across two campuses supporting corporate, R&D, and manufacturing activities. The company also operates an FDA-registered, ISO 13485–certified, MDSAP-audited manufacturing facility in Camarillo, California (supporting regulatory pathways for FDA and EU MDR (CE)), maintains education and lab research facilities in Fullerton and Las Vegas, is building a brand new R&D center in Temecula scheduled for completion in October 2025, and maintains large-scale manufacturing capabilities in China and Taiwan. This foundation ensures Pac-Dent can deliver innovation, compliance, education, and reliable supply at scale to partners and clinicians worldwide.

About Pac-Dent, Inc.

For over thirty-three years, Pac-Dent has served the dental community with uncompromising quality and innovation. The company’s portfolio spans preventive and infection-control solutions, restorative materials, and the award-winning Rodin™ line of dental 3D printing resins—recipient of the 2024 Cellerant Best of Class Technology Award. Pac-Dent’s investments in advanced materials, AI-enabled workflows, and open-system interoperability are redefining restorative and preventive dentistry worldwide. Learn more at pac-dent.com.

About Ackuretta Technologies

Ackuretta is a pioneer in dental 3D printing, known for chairside-ready printers, validated materials, and ALPHA AI CAM software that streamlines digital workflows for clinics and labs. Its ecosystem includes SOL and SOL Plus printers, CLEANI washers, and CURIE/CURIE Plus curing units. Headquartered in Taipei, Ackuretta supports customers through a global distribution network.

ADA Treasurer Offers Deeper Dive into Finances

 

If you are an ADA member (as I am), you may be aware that in the last six months or so, the ADA has been communicating about the organizations finances in a way they never have before (at least to my knowledge).

The influx of venture capital into the industry, followed by the rapid expansion of corporate owned dental offices, has created some ripples.  Firms with large bank accounts have been gobbling up private practices at an alarming rate.  Combining that fact with the increasing debt load of graduating dental students has made many young doctors choose a career in corporate dentistry.

My take:  Many of those corporate dentists do not join the ADA.  They fail to see the benefits of paying dues to the organization.  I think they look at the organization as a group for private practice owners.  However that is far from the truth.

Since membership dollars are down, the ADA faces decreasing revenues paired with increasing costs.  That has created a situation with their finances that has to be addressed.  In the past, people have been critical of the ADA's lack of transparency about things... I was one of them.  However, this year they have made a concerted effort to be much more upfront about things.  I salute them for that.

In the last couple of months the ADA scaled back their expenditures for 2025 and they have been very upfront about the budgetary items they have cut.

The ADA serves a critical role in the career of every dentist, whether those non-member doctors realize that or not.  Our profession is better because the ADA exists.  Their lobbying efforts alone are worth the dues money I pay.  To wrap this up I want to state that I think *every* doctor should be a member.  We need a cohesive voice that speaks for all of us.  If you are not a member, go the ADA website and take a look around.  Especially take a look at what the member benefits are.  I think you will come away from that impressed.  I *highly encourage* you to join.

Getting back to the real subject of today's post... in the continuing effort to provide financial transparency the ADA treasurer has released a much deeper look into the organization's finances.  You can find that deep dive here.  

Sycamore Partners Completes Acquisition of Walgreens Boots Alliance

Since a lot of readers here are practicing dentists, I figure that this is sort of a public service announcement.  We all write prescriptions... or we click and send them to a pharmacy.  Either way, it's good to be up to date on changes in the pharmaceutical industry, especially when it can impact our patients.  So with that out of the way, here's a press release I came across about the recent sale of Walgreens to Sycamore partners.  This may have zero impact on practicing dentists, but just in case...

Sycamore Partners (“Sycamore”) announced today that it has completed its acquisition of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (the “Company” or “WBA”).

Sycamore is acquiring the business in partnership with Stefano Pessina and his family, who have reinvested 100% of their interests in WBA, demonstrating their ongoing support and confidence in the Company’s future.

Stefan Kaluzny, Managing Director of Sycamore, said, “Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc., its companies and its dedicated team members play an essential role in the communities they serve around the world. We look forward to partnering with the management teams at each company, including Walgreens, The Boots Group, Shields Health Solutions, CareCentrix and VillageMD. As standalone companies under private ownership, they will build on their proud legacies to enhance the customer experience and deepen the trusted relationships they have earned with millions of customers around the world.”

Stefano Pessina said, “This milestone begins a new chapter for Walgreens, The Boots Group and the other portfolio businesses. Our family has proudly supported these companies for decades, and we are pleased to continue that commitment alongside Sycamore. Together, we are united in our belief in the future of these organizations and the essential role they play in millions of lives each day.”

Following the closing of the transaction, Walgreens, The Boots Group, Shields Health Solutions, CareCentrix and VillageMD will operate as separate standalone companies.

With the completion of the acquisition, WBA's common stock has ceased trading and will no longer be listed on the Nasdaq. In addition to their cash consideration of $11.45 per WBA share, WBA shareholders will receive one non-transferable right to receive up to an additional $3.00 in cash per WBA share from the net proceeds of the future monetization of WBA’s debt and equity interests in VillageMD, which includes the Village Medical, Summit Health and CityMD businesses.

Advisors

UBS Investment Bank is acting as lead financial advisor, Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan are acting as co-lead financial advisors, Citi and Wells Fargo are acting as financial advisors, Davis, Polk & Wardwell LLP is acting as legal counsel and Bass Berry & Sims PLC is acting as healthcare regulatory counsel to Sycamore.

Centerview Partners is acting as financial advisor, Kirkland & Ellis LLP is acting as legal advisor and Ropes & Gray LLP is acting as healthcare regulatory counsel to WBA. Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC was also a financial advisor, and provided a fairness opinion to the WBA Board of Directors.

Debevoise & Plimpton LLP is acting as legal advisor to Stefano Pessina.