Increasing DSO competition and operating costs, stagnant reimbursements and staffing shortages are among some of the greatest challenges facing dental practices today. 

Theresa York, a former dental practice manager in Portland, Maine, has been accused of stealing $456,000 from the practice, according to an Aug. 14 report by Portland Press Herald.

Here are five updates affecting dentistry that have taken place in North Carolina since July 21: 

Denver-based Espire Dental recently received a subordinated debt investment from Ironwood Capital. 

The UConn School of Dental Medicine earned a five-year extension on its training grant from the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research and the National Institutes of Health.

The personal health information of approximately 765 patients of The University of Buffalo (N.Y.) dental clinic may have been compromised after the school's third-party billing services provider was hit with a data breach.

Several dental practices have closed in recent years for various reasons, including staffing shortages and financial constraints.

From a tuberculosis outbreak to a CMS proposal, here are five federal updates affecting dentistry that have taken place since July 17:

Here are six updates on the dental industry in Illinois that Becker's has reported on since June 14:

A former office manager for a Massachusetts dental practice was sentenced to two years of probation for her role in a Medicaid fraud scheme.