Report: V symposium on sustainable dentistry
The official opening of the event was held by the Director of the Federal Council of Dentistry – Dr. Cláudio Miyake and together with Dr. Claudio Fernandes, Scientific Advisor of the ABCD.
They have interacted all sectors of dentistry: Class, Associative, Government and Industry Councils mentioned below with their respective representatives: Director of the Federal Council of Dentistry – Dr. Cláudio Miyake, President of the FDI – Dra. Kathryn kell, Director of the Regional Council of São Paulo – Marcos Capez, President of ADI Chapter Brazil – Dr. Cláudio Fernandes, Institutional Director of ADI Chapter Brazil – Dr Alberto Fernandes Moreira, President of ABCD – Dr. Silvio Cecchetto, President of ABO Nacional – Paulo Murilo Fontoura, ABIMO (research and education) – Dr. Sílvia Maria R. de Alencar Gonçalvez, GDPD – Dra. Prof. Mirian Turbino, and USP – Prof. Mary Carolina Skelton, among others.
The following lectures were carried out: The impact of the Minamata Convention – Global perspective, analysis of the regulatory framework convention on the use and disposal of dental amalgam, and use of dental amalgam management, presented by the Ministry of Health representative, presented a current situation in the SUS.
All the topics mentioned among the participants were discussed, clearly showing that the amalgam is in full decay, only used in the most necesitadas populations (the specialists of dentistry explaining gives great difficulty to use resin in these patients), the SUS, and in specific cases as very poor and special patients, because in the practices is irrelevant the use. Since January 1, 2019, the use of mercury and amalgam alloy in the form not encapsulated in dentistry (DRC) has been banned, and there are already resolutions (DRC) on how to proceed with health waste; during the debate, the representative of the Ministry of Health announced that new rules and procedures to be carried out with dental amalgam in the Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS) will soon come into force, such as the smallest number of restorations to be withdrawn per patient in the use of as few dental amalgam as possible in restorations (only in specific cases), verification of new restorative materials already available in the market with properties very similar to dental amalgam (material exposed in the symposium) showing that we are moving forward with the Minamata Convention.
There is a general consensus that there must be a great effort to carry out a great information movement (communication) about sustainability that must be worked together with the entire dental class, including in the faculties, since few dental surgeons know the sustainability and the Minamata convention, showing care to be taken in the use in its removal in old restorations, as special care in the collection and also the disposal of the same (very deficient in Brazil), being impossible the amalgam separators to not harm the environment and consequently the health of the population.
The symposium was supported by ADI, Brazil. Sponsors were METASYS, SDI, and IVOCLAR-VIVADENT that defend sustainability already possessing studies and materials that can already replace dental amalgam in several procedures, among other equipment such as amalgam separators.
This symposium could make changes in the policy regarding the use of dental amalgam, which will impact directly on the health and sustainability of Brazilians.
Alberto Fernandes Moreira1, Claudio Pinheiro Fernandes2, Liana Bastos Freitas Fernandes3
1National Comission of Multiprofessional Health Residency of the Ministries of Health and Education, 2Center of
Sustainability in Dentistry, Nova Friburgo Health Institute, Fluminense Federal University, Nova Friburgo, 3Department of Pediatric Dentistry,
Rio de Janeiro Federal University,
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
*Corresponding author:
Alberto Fernandes Moreira, National Comission of Multiprofessional
Health Residency of the Ministries of
Health and Education. E-mail: albertofmoreira10@gmail.com
