Volume 8 • 2021 • Issue 5

A March 2020 Consensus Study Report 1 of The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) recommends that the field of temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) must be totally changed in terms of biomedical research, professional education/training, and patient care. The NASEM Report includes 11 recommendations covering research, treatments, training, and education to address gaps and opportunities in each area. Recent research demonstrates that TMDs are complex multi‑system disorders, which points to the need for a different, patient-centered, interprofessional approach to TMD research and treatment. Therefore, traditional dental-centric approaches to research and treatment of TMDs must be modernized to align with insights gained from new scientific discoveries. I would invite my Canadian colleagues to access the announcement cited below, 2 which summarizes the 11 recommendations that are presented in the nearly 500‑page NASEM Report. The summary and discussion presented in that announcement should encourage many readers to look at the report itself, which is available online. - Charles S. Greene, DDS Clinical Professor Emeritus, University of Illinois College of Dentistry TMD Report Priorities for Research andCare References 1. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, andMedicine. 2020. Temporomandibular disorders: Priorities for research and care.Washington, DC:The National Academies Press. https://www.nap.edu/catalog/25652/temporomandibular-disorders-priorities-for-research-and-care 2. Greene CS, Kusiak JW, Cowley T, Cowley Jr. AW. Recently released report by major scientific academy proposes significant changes in understanding andmanaging TMDs. J Oral Maxillofac Surg . 2021 Jun 12;S0278-2391(21)00547-4. Reader Response L ast year, CDA Essentials published an article 1 about Dr. Michael Chow’s heartwarming return home after recovering from COVID-19. More than a year later, we checked in with Dr. Chow, who is enjoying being back at his dental practice in Pitt Meadows, BC. “I started working part-time in September,” he says. He has also returned to his active lifestyle of fishing, golfing and skiing. He no longer needs to visit his respiratory specialist. “My lungs are permanently scarred causing decreased diffusion rate, which isn’t something that can be treated,” Dr. Chow says. But he still has the energy and athletic capacity to do his favourite activities, such as running. Dr. Michael Chow A Year After Recovery “On the 1-year anniversary of my discharge date, I ran a half marathon to celebrate being alive and just being able to stay active,” he says. Although Canada has high vaccination rates, he still feels that vigilance is necessary. “Other places in the world are not doing so well,” he says, “and a new variant—or even Delta variant—could easily derail our recovery.” Reference 1. “The World Changed When I Was Sick.” CDA Essentials . Issue 5, 2020, p. 22-24. 16 | 2021 | Issue 5 News and Events