For the Love of Endo Podcast

The Irrigation Wars - What's Really Cleaning Your Root Canals?

Every endodontist agrees that irrigation is where root canal success is won or lost. But agreement ends there. In this episode of For the Love of Endo, Dr. Brett Gilbert and Dr. Bill Nudera discover just how differently two experienced clinicians can approach the same fundamental step — one swearing by proprietary solutions like Triton, the other swearing by the pallet of Clorox in his supply room. What starts as a friendly disagreement quickly opens up bigger questions: How stable is sodium hypochlorite really? Do surfactants make a measurable difference in the canal? Can ATP testing tell you when a canal is truly clean? And how small can we actually go with access preps when we trust our chemistry to do the heavy lifting? Featuring candid conversations with fellow endodontists and an inside look at emerging irrigation technologies, this episode captures the honest, unresolved debates that happen between colleagues — the ones that don't make it into the textbooks but shape how we practice every day. Guest Contributors: 🎙️ Dr. Sonia Chopra — Endodontist, joins the irrigation debate with her own clinical perspective on solution selection and protocol 🎙️ Dr. Randy Cross —  Endodontist and inventor of the Endocator, a 5-second ATP test for canal cleanliness discusses how a chair side biomarker test can help determine when the irrigation is actually effective 🎙️ Andreas Schmocker (CEO and Co-Founder Odne) — Bioengineer and PhD in photonics, explains cavitation-based irrigation technology with Odne Clean 🎙️ Alex Johnson (Director of Engineering - Vista Apex Solutions) — breaks down the surfactant chemistry behind Triton and the university research (UBC, UPenn, Toronto, MUSC) supporting its efficacy 🎧 New episodes of For the Love of Endo, hosted by Dr. Brett Gilbert and Dr. Bill Nudera, drop every two weeks. Subscribe and leave a review if this one made you rethink your irrigation protocol. We are elevating Endodontics, one conversation at a time! For the Love of Endo is where the specialty comes alive - through honest conversation, sharp clinical insight, bold ideas and a shared passion for doing endodontics at the highest level.  Follow, rate, and share this podcast with colleagues committed to elevating endodontics. Learn more and connect at ForTheLoveOfEndo.com Hosted by Dr. Brett Gilbert and Dr. Bill Nudera—leaders in clinical endodontics and education. Join the conversation and connect with our community of clinicians. This podcast is for educational purposes only and does not constitute clinical or medical advice. Interested in partnering with the podcast? Contact: fortheloveofendopodcast@gmail.com

Diagnosis Is the Real Procedure

What if the most important thing you do for your patient never shows up on the procedure code? In this episode, two experienced endodontists pull back the curtain on the part of clinical care that rarely gets talked about — the art and science of diagnosis. Dr. Brett Gilbert joins the conversation to make a bold but simple argument: no matter how flawless your technique, if you're treating the wrong tooth, you've already failed. The discussion dives deep into how specialists actually think before they ever walk into a room — the intake systems, the radiographic review, the subjective questionnaires designed to force active listening — and why they've already formed a working diagnosis 95% of the time before saying hello to the patient. But this episode gets real about the gray zones. Cold testing that contradicts what you see on the CBCT. Diffuse pain that won't localize. Fractures too small to visualize but large enough to destroy bone. The hosts unpack the concept of "fracture necrosis" — a term Dr. Berman coined after years of frustration watching well-treated teeth fail for reasons that couldn't be seen on any image — and how that curiosity led to a landmark (and initially controversial) paper in the Journal of Endodontics. They also tackle one of the thorniest conversations in clinical practice: when do you guide a patient toward a decision, and when do you hand it back to them? The two take different but thought-provoking stances — and it makes for one of the most honest exchanges about patient communication you'll hear. If you've ever treated a tooth perfectly and still lost, this episode is for you. For the Love of Endo is where the specialty comes alive - through honest conversation, sharp clinical insight, bold ideas and a shared passion for doing endodontics at the highest level.  Follow, rate, and share this podcast with colleagues committed to elevating endodontics. Learn more and connect at ForTheLoveOfEndo.com Hosted by Dr. Brett Gilbert and Dr. Bill Nudera—leaders in clinical endodontics and education. Join the conversation and connect with our community of clinicians. This podcast is for educational purposes only and does not constitute clinical or medical advice. Interested in partnering with the podcast? Contact: fortheloveofendopodcast@gmail.com

The Future of Endo Starts Here - Recorded LIVE at AAE26

Recorded live on Day 2 of the American Association of Endodontists annual meeting, this episode captures Dr. Brett and Dr. Bill mid-momentum — reflecting on two days of lectures, conversations, and the electric energy that only happens when an entire specialty gathers in one room. The hosts unpack what's been on everyone's mind at the meeting: the evolving role of AI in clinical decision-making, the next generation of irrigation and instrumentation technology, and what it means to keep growing as a clinician long after you've mastered the basics. Brett opens up about his exploratory approach to new technology — and the honest failures that came with it — while Bill reflects on the year-long solo journey of building a decision-making app for endodontists from scratch. But it's not all technique. Brett's lecture on emotional intelligence lands as one of the episode's most resonant moments — a reminder that the most important instrument in any procedure is the clinician behind it. Equal parts recap, reflection, and rallying cry, this episode sets the tone for everything For the Love of Endo is setting out to be. For the Love of Endo is where the specialty comes alive - through honest conversation, sharp clinical insight, bold ideas and a shared passion for doing endodontics at the highest level.  Follow, rate, and share this podcast with colleagues committed to elevating endodontics. Learn more and connect at ForTheLoveOfEndo.com Hosted by Dr. Brett Gilbert and Dr. Bill Nudera—leaders in clinical endodontics and education. Join the conversation and connect with our community of clinicians. This podcast is for educational purposes only and does not constitute clinical or medical advice. Interested in partnering with the podcast? Contact: fortheloveofendopodcast@gmail.com

For the Love of Endo - Our Origin Story

FOR THE LOVE OF ENDO – Origin Story Every meaningful collaboration has a beginning. For Bill and Brett, it started in 2004 at the University of Illinois Chicago- a second-year endodontic resident and a newly graduated clinician from University of Maryland Dental School. There was an immediate connection. And over the next two decades, that connection never really left. For 22 years, their paths kept crossing. The same conversation kept resurfacing - “we should build something together.” But like so many ideas in a busy clinical life, timing always seemed just out of reach. Until now. In this inaugural episode, Dr. Bill Nudera and Dr. Brett Gilbert share the story behind For the Love of Endo- what it took to finally turn years of friendship, respect, and shared vision into something real.This isn’t just a podcast. It’s a platform built on a simple but powerful belief: the next generation of endodontists deserves access to authentic clinical insight, refined technique, and a genuine passion for the craft. If you’ve ever had an idea you couldn’t ignore—or a collaboration you knew needed to happen—this episode will resonate.This is where it begins. Learn. Grow. Share. Ask questions. This is For the Love of Endo. For the Love of Endo is where the specialty comes alive - through honest conversation, sharp clinical insight, bold ideas and a shared passion for doing endodontics at the highest level.  Follow, rate, and share this podcast with colleagues committed to elevating endodontics. Learn more and connect at ForTheLoveOfEndo.com Hosted by Dr. Brett Gilbert and Dr. Bill Nudera—leaders in clinical endodontics and education. Join the conversation and connect with our community of clinicians. This podcast is for educational purposes only and does not constitute clinical or medical advice. Interested in partnering with the podcast? Contact: fortheloveofendopodcast@gmail.com