International Dental Show Is Hard to Leave … Literally

It’s always easy to go to the International Dental Show in Germany and it’s often hard to leave. That disparity was even greater this year.

The biennial show features more than 2,000 exhibitors from throughout the world, a staggering amount of attendees and a peek into the future of dentistry. For Patterson Dental, the industry’s technology leader, the IDS is truly exciting and undoubtedly a can’t-miss event.

As easy as it was to go, it was especially hard to leave. I’m not saying that only because of what an amazing experience the IDS is; I mean it was a bit of a comedy of errors for us physically to get out of the country. Striking airport workers in Cologne, Germany, meant we needed to take an overnight train and fly out of Amsterdam instead to return stateside last weekend.

Of course, the experience was every bit worth it. Our exclusive partner, Sirona, is based in Germany and had a breathtakingly large contingent there showing off their continued innovations.

You never know what you might find at the IDS. Over the years, we’ve discovered technologies there that we’ve been able to bring back to the U.S., dramatically improving the patient experience and practice lifestyle. With all those innovators in one location, it’s only a matter of time until we can do it again.