Assuring the Safety of Dental Materials: The Usefulness and Application of Standards.

The formal history of standards and dentistry in the United States goes back to World War I and was prompted by the government's need to buy large quantities of dental materials to treat "an army of teeth in disrepair." This article covers the use of scientific research to establish specifications and standards used to evaluate dental materials and products, and how a practitioner can use these standards to assure the safety and performance of the materials that they use in their everyday practice.