Right now I’m sitting in Moscow’s Domodedevo airport, in transit to a place called Cheboksary, about 500 miles to the east. I am going to present a 4 hour lecture on the application of endodontic concepts in the development, design and usage of a new endodontic instrument used in reciprocation.
The instrument is Dentsply Maillefer’s WaveOne of which I am a co-inventor. After the lecture I will give a masterclass using the microscope and extracted teeth to illustrate three dimensional obturation with Calamus and Gutta Core, also working with WaveOne.
Actually, I have already done the same lecture twice this week. Firstly, in a place called Khanty Mansiysk in Northern Siberia and Rostov on Don in southern Russia.
Khantiy is the home of many preserved mammoths found in the ice – pictured below. Fascinating archeological park. We lectured to around 100 dentists in a government run clinic. They liked the idea of a single file system. Endodontics can never be simple but we can try to make it simpler.
Afterwards I could have done with an early night but was taken out to eat in a local restaurant to enjoy huge piles of food, mainly fish, and of course many vodka toasts. I have learnt to sip the glass rather than finish it off because there are so many toasts, including mine. Always fun, the Russians are such warm and welcoming hosts.
Rostov is a beautiful place on the Don river. The room was packed with general dentists and local opinion leaders who had travelled over 500 miles to see me. Russia is simply huge
I enjoy my visits to Russia. They are so keen to learn here, especially new technology and as you know I so like teaching.
Sadly, as I travel home, I will miss my beloved Spurs play Chelsea at the weekend, but you can’t have it all!
Mammoths on show in Khantiy, Russia