Amos Dienard Promotes Fluoride Varnish Treatment in Pediatric & Family Practices
“Since about 2007, Deinard has trained doctors, nurses, nurse practitioners, clinic support staff and others in about 150 medical clinics statewide. "I want to make the public hungry, so they go to their doctors and demand it," Deinard said. He's happy to be a thorn in the side of his professional peers who haven't yet jumped in….
For the complete story, go to: http://www.startribune.com/local/122781599.html
Advancing Oral Health In America
“Though it is highly preventable, tooth decay is a common chronic disease in the United States and one of the most common diseases worldwide. Individuals and many health care professionals remain unaware of the risk factors and preventive approaches for this and many other oral diseases, and they do not fully appreciate how oral health affects overall health and well-being. In this report, the IOM highlights the vital role that HHS can play in improving oral health and oral health care in the United States if HHS's efforts have clearly articulated goals; are coordinated effectively and adequately funded; and have high-level accountability.”
For a summary of the report and link to full report (free online), go to: http://www.iom.edu/Reports/2011/Advancing-Oral-Health-in-America.aspx
Promoting Health Literacy at the Herschel S. Horowitz Center
A two day conference, June 1-2, hosted by the School of Public Health's Herschel S. Horowitz Center at the University of Maryland focused on the creation of a state-wide coalition on health literacy.
The conference was highlighted by the announcement of the first Rima E. Rudd Emerging Health Literacy Scholar Award. Professor Bonnie Braun, who currently oversees the Horowitz Center said, "Part of the Horowitz Center's mission is to educate tomorrow's workforce. This fellowship will help us attract doctoral students in advancing health literacy science as part of their dissertation. The prestige of a fellowship named after a national and international health literacy scholar will add to the reputation of the Horowitz Center for Health Literacy and to that of the School of Public Health."
For the full press release, go to: http://www.newsdesk.umd.edu/vibrant/release.cfm?ArticleID=2441
Is Orthodontic Treatment Appropriate for TMJ/TMD Disorders? No.
This [Cochrane] review found that there is no evidence from trials to show that active orthodontic treatment can prevent or relieve temporomandibular disorders adding support to teeth not being part of its cause. It is suspected that we do not know the real cause of TMD at present.
See http://www2.cochrane.org/reviews/en/ab006541.html
Is general anesthesia safe for younger brains? ["Cause for Concern"]
By Rob Goszkowski, Assistant Editor, DrBicuspid.com
[Excerpt]
April 4, 2011 -- New research has called into question the effects of anesthesia on the brains of young children and sparked a call for greater understanding about potential long-term neurological consequences, according to an article in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM, March 9, 2011).
Studies in animals suggest that anesthetic drugs could harm neurologic and cognitive development in young children and neonates. A lack of data and difficulty in standardizing studies makes the dearth of information likely to be an ongoing problem, according to the authors. Some anesthesiologists believe that the existing evidence is enough to warrant added caution when considering general anesthesia in pediatric patients.
"I think it's definitely cause for concern for any anesthesiologist who treats children," Steven Ganzberg, DMD, MS, a professor of clinical anesthesiology at Ohio State University, told DrBicuspid.com. "You're looking at behavior changes that take place over a lifetime, so I think the jury's going to be out. But my take is, if you have a young child and you think that the procedures that need to be done can be done without general anesthesia, I think that's worth considering."
For the complete article, go to: http://www.drbicuspid.com/index.aspx?Sec=sup&Sub=rst&Pag=dis&ItemId=307283&wf=820
[For an alternative, see the preceding Editorial: On HOM]
Is Filling Baby Teeth A Fiction?
[Posted on the Dental Public Health ListServe April 4, 2011]
FiCTION (Filling Children’s Teeth: Indicated Or Not) Trial is a UK collaborative multi-centre randomised controlled trial, funded by NIHR-HTA, comparing the clinical and cost-effectiveness of three management approaches for dental decay in primary teeth. These approaches include: Surgical management with best practice prevention; Biological management with best practice prevention; and best practice Prevention alone. The trial outcome measures are: pain; sepsis; the incidence and pattern of new dental decay in primary and permanent teeth; quality of life; cost-effectiveness; and patient, parent and dentist preferences. The FiCTION Pilot Rehearsal Trial started on 1 April 2010 and will run for 15 months. The Main Trial follows the Pilot Rehearsal Trial and will run for 5 years. Further information on FiCTION Trial is available at “www.fictiontrial.info”, where you can also find the recent issue of FiCTION Trial Newsletter.
[For further information, contact]
Mojtaba Dorri, DDS, MSc, PhD
Dental Health Services Research Unit
University of Dundee, The Mackenzie Building
Kirsty Semple Way
Dundee, DD2 4BF
Tel.: 44-(0)1382 420171/ 44-(0)1382 425762
Fax: 44-(0)1382 420051/ 44-(0)1382 206321
AJPH’s Voices From The Past
Don’t miss this section in the June 2011 issue of AJPH with:
· Prisons: A Social Crime and Failure, with a poignant quote of Dostoyevsky
· Red Emma: Idealistic Revolutionary and “one of the most dangerous women…”
· Current Preoccupations of Health Officers – “the paramount problem of budgets…”
· Walt Whitman excerpts – Bathing―Cleanliness―Personal Beauty and A Plea for [Clean] Water
Click on: http://ajph.aphapublications.org/current.dtl#VOICES_FROM_THE_PAST