Dental Amalgam: An alloy used in restorative dentistry that contains mercury, silver, tin, copper, and possibly zinc.Mercury: A silver metallic element that exists as a liquid at room temperature. It has the atomic symbol Hg (from hydrargyrum, liquid silver), atomic number 80, and atomic weight 200.59. Mercury is used in many industrial applications and its salts have been employed therapeutically as purgatives, antisyphilitics, disinfectants, and astringents. It can be absorbed through the skin and mucous membranes which leads to MERCURY POISONING. Because of its toxicity, the clinical use of mercury and mercurials is diminishing.Dental Waste: Any waste product generated by a dental office, surgery, clinic, or laboratory including amalgams, saliva, and rinse water.Dental Restoration, Permanent: A restoration designed to remain in service for not less than 20 to 30 years, usually made of gold casting, cohesive gold, or amalgam. (Jablonski, Dictionary of Dentistry, 1992)Mercury Compounds: Inorganic compounds that contain mercury as an integral part of the molecule.Medical Waste Disposal: Management, removal, and elimination of biologic, infectious, pathologic, and dental waste. The concept includes blood, mucus, tissue removed at surgery or autopsy, soiled surgical dressings, and other materials requiring special control and handling. Disposal may take place where the waste is generated or elsewhere.Unithiol: A chelating agent used as an antidote to heavy metal poisoning.Mercury PoisoningLegislation, Dental: Laws and regulations pertaining to the field of dentistry, proposed for enactment or recently enacted by a legislative body.Dental Alloys: A mixture of metallic elements or compounds with other metallic or metalloid elements in varying proportions for use in restorative or prosthetic dentistry.MaineMercury Poisoning, Nervous System: Neurologic disorders associated with exposure to inorganic and organic forms of MERCURY. Acute intoxication may be associated with gastrointestinal disturbances, mental status changes, and PARAPARESIS. Chronic exposure to inorganic mercury usually occurs in industrial workers, and manifests as mental confusion, prominent behavioral changes (including psychosis), DYSKINESIAS, and NEURITIS. Alkyl mercury poisoning may occur through ingestion of contaminated seafood or grain, and its characteristic features include POLYNEUROPATHY; ATAXIA; vision loss; NYSTAGMUS, PATHOLOGIC; and DEAFNESS. (From Joynt, Clinical Neurology, 1997, Ch20, pp10-15)Dental Care: The total of dental diagnostic, preventive, and restorative services provided to meet the needs of a patient (from Illustrated Dictionary of Dentistry, 1982).Chewing Gum: A preparation of chicle, sometimes mixed with other plastic substances, sweetened and flavored. It is masticated usually for pleasure as a candy substitute but it sometimes acts as a vehicle for the administration of medication.Dental Offices: The room or rooms in which the dentist and dental staff provide care. Offices include all rooms in the dentist's office suite.Dental Staff: Personnel who provide dental service to patients in an organized facility, institution or agency.Seychelles: A group of Indian Ocean Islands, east of Tanzania. Their capital is Victoria. They were first claimed by the French in 1744 but taken by the English in 1794 and made a dependency of MAURITIUS in 1810. They became a crown colony in 1903 and a republic within the Commonwealth in 1976. They were named for the French finance minister, Jean Moreau de Sechelles, but respelled by the English in 1794. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p1102 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p496)Tin: A trace element that is required in bone formation. It has the atomic symbol Sn, atomic number 50, and atomic weight 118.71.Education, Dental: Use for articles concerning dental education in general.Dental Caries: Localized destruction of the tooth surface initiated by decalcification of the enamel followed by enzymatic lysis of organic structures and leading to cavity formation. If left unchecked, the cavity may penetrate the enamel and dentin and reach the pulp.Schools, Dental: Educational institutions for individuals specializing in the field of dentistry.Students, Dental: Individuals enrolled a school of dentistry or a formal educational program in leading to a degree in dentistry.Methylmercury Compounds: Organic compounds in which mercury is attached to a methyl group.Neodymium: Neodymium. An element of the rare earth family of metals. It has the atomic symbol Nd, atomic number 60, and atomic weight 144.24, and is used in industrial applications.Corrosion: The gradual destruction of a metal or alloy due to oxidation or action of a chemical agent. (From McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 6th ed)Fractional Precipitation: A method which uses specific precipitation reactions to separate or collect substances from a solution.Silver: Silver. An element with the atomic symbol Ag, atomic number 47, and atomic weight 107.87. It is a soft metal that is used medically in surgical instruments, dental prostheses, and alloys. Long-continued use of silver salts can lead to a form of poisoning known as ARGYRIA.Body Burden: The total amount of a chemical, metal or radioactive substance present at any time after absorption in the body of man or animal.Dental Clinics: Facilities where dental care is provided to patients.Composite Resins: Synthetic resins, containing an inert filler, that are widely used in dentistry.Dental Care for Chronically Ill: Dental care for patients with chronic diseases. These diseases include chronic cardiovascular, endocrinologic, hematologic, immunologic, neoplastic, and renal diseases. The concept does not include dental care for the mentally or physically disabled which is DENTAL CARE FOR DISABLED.Dental Care for Children: The giving of attention to the special dental needs of children, including the prevention of tooth diseases and instruction in dental hygiene and dental health. The dental care may include the services provided by dental specialists.Seafood: Marine fish and shellfish used as food or suitable for food. (Webster, 3d ed) SHELLFISH and FISH PRODUCTS are more specific types of SEAFOOD.Dental Pulp: A richly vascularized and innervated connective tissue of mesodermal origin, contained in the central cavity of a tooth and delimited by the dentin, and having formative, nutritive, sensory, and protective functions. (Jablonski, Dictionary of Dentistry, 1992)Dental Hygienists: Persons trained in an accredited school or dental college and licensed by the state in which they reside to provide dental prophylaxis under the direction of a licensed dentist.Faculty, Dental: The teaching staff and members of the administrative staff having academic rank in a dental school.Dental Care for Disabled: Dental care for the emotionally, mentally, or physically disabled patient. It does not include dental care for the chronically ill ( = DENTAL CARE FOR CHRONICALLY ILL).Dental Anxiety: Abnormal fear or dread of visiting the dentist for preventive care or therapy and unwarranted anxiety over dental procedures.Food Contamination: The presence in food of harmful, unpalatable, or otherwise objectionable foreign substances, e.g. chemicals, microorganisms or diluents, before, during, or after processing or storage.Insurance, Dental: Insurance providing coverage for dental care.Dental Auxiliaries: Personnel whose work is prescribed and supervised by the dentist.Dental Health Services: Services designed to promote, maintain, or restore dental health.Small Business: For-profit enterprise with relatively few to moderate number of employees and low to moderate volume of sales.Practice Management, Dental: The organization and operation of the business aspects of a dental practice.Practice Management: Business management of medical, dental and veterinary practices that may include capital financing, utilization management, and arrangement of capitation agreements with other parties.Practice Management, Medical: The organization and operation of the business aspects of a physician's practice.American Dental Association: Professional society representing the field of dentistry.United States Environmental Protection Agency: An agency in the Executive Branch of the Federal Government. It was created as an independent regulatory agency responsible for the implementation of federal laws designed to protect the environment. Its mission is to protect human health and the ENVIRONMENT.Liability, Legal: Accountability and responsibility to another, enforceable by civil or criminal sanctions.Fraxinus: A plant genus of the family OLEACEAE. Members contain secoiridoid glucosides.Visitors to Patients: Patients' guests and rules for visiting.Insurance, Liability: Insurance against loss resulting from liability for injury or damage to the persons or property of others.Questionnaires: Predetermined sets of questions used to collect data - clinical data, social status, occupational group, etc. The term is often applied to a self-completed survey instrument.Computer Graphics: The process of pictorial communication, between human and computers, in which the computer input and output have the form of charts, drawings, or other appropriate pictorial representation.