The OSAP Board of Directors has approved a new Independent Contractor position to manage the organization's educational services. The candidate can be based anywhere in the United States. Click here for the complete job description. Interested candidates are asked to email their resume, cover letter and salary requirements by August 23 to tlong@osap.org. OSAP would like the new Educational Services Manager to start on September 1.

CHICAGO— Volunteers are encouraged to register for the American Dental Association (ADA) Mission of Mercy (MOM) charity dental clinic scheduled to take place Sunday, Nov. 3, in New Orleans, the site of the ADA’s 2013 Annual Session and World Marketplace Exhibition. Together with America's Dentists Care Foundation and support from the Louisiana and New Orleans Dental Associations, the event aims to serve 1,000 people in need of dental care.

Organizers hope to attract 750 dentists, their team members, clerical and support staff, students, laboratory technicians and office specialists as well as family members older than 18 to administer and support the dental clinic. The children’s portion of the MOM event will be sponsored by CareCredit in tandem with Give Kids A Smile, the ADA’s signature access to care program for underserved children.

This year's ADA MOM in New Orleans will run from 5:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Central Standard Time on Nov. 3 with full and half day volunteer shifts available. At this time, the ADA asks that MOM volunteers keep event details private so attendance can be managed through local promotional efforts. MOM participants do not need to be registered for the ADA Annual Session to volunteer. For more information or to register as a volunteer, visit ADA.org/MOM. 

CHICAGO – New guidelines from the United States Public Health Service update the recommendations for the management of healthcare personnel (HCP) with occupational exposure to HIV and use of postexposure prophylaxis (PEP). The guidelines, published online today in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, the journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA), emphasize the immediate use of a PEP regimen containing three or more antiretroviral drugs after any occupational exposure to HIV.

The PEP regimens recommended in the guidelines encourage the consistent use of a combination of three or more drugs, that are better tolerated than those recommended in the previously published guidelines from 2005, for all occupational exposures to HIV. The guidance eliminates the previous recommendation to assess the level of risk associated with individual exposures to help determine the appropriate number of drugs recommended for PEP.

"Preventing exposures should be the leading strategy to prevent occupational HIV infections," said David Kuhar, MD, an author of the guidelines and medical epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion. "However, when an exposure occurs, it should be considered an urgent medical concern and a PEP regimen should be started right away, ideally within hours of the potential exposure."

Expert consultation should be sought, but not at the expense of delaying treatment. Exposed HCP taking HIV PEP should complete a full four-week regimen and undergo follow-up HIV testing, monitoring for drug toxicity and counseling, beginning with follow-up appointments within 72 hours of the exposure. If a newer 4th generation HIV antigen/antibody combination test is used for follow-up testing, an option to conclude HIV testing at 4 months, rather than the recommended 6 months after exposure, is provided. Many of the revised recommendations are intended to make the PEP regimen better tolerated, increasing the possibility that HCP complete the full regimen.

The guidelines were developed by an interagency Public Health Service working group comprised of representatives from the CDC, National Institutes of Health, Food and Drug Administration and the Health Resources and Services Administration, in consultation with an external expert panel. The updated revisions were based upon expert opinion.

HCP might include emergency medical service personnel, dental personnel, laboratory personnel, autopsy personnel, environmental maintenance personnel, nurses, nursing assistants, physicians, technicians, therapists, pharmacists, students and trainees. Many HCP exposures to HIV occur outside of health clinic hours of operation and initial exposure management is often overseen by emergency physicians or other providers who are not experts in the treatment of HIV infection or the use of antiretroviral medications. As such, the updated guidelines should be distributed and made readily available to emergency physicians and other providers as needed.

David T. Kuhar, MD; David K. Henderson, MD; Kimberly A. Struble, PharmD; Walid Heneine, PhD; Vasavi Thomas, RPh, MPH; Laura W. Cheever, MD, ScM; Ahmed Gomaa, MD, ScD, MSPH; Adelisa L. Panlilio, MD; for the US Public Health Service Working Group. "Updated US Public Health Service Guidelines for the Management of Occupational Exposures to Human Immunodeficiency Virus and Recommendations for Postexposure Prophylaxis." Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology 34:9 (September 2013).

Published through a partnership between the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America and The University of Chicago Press, Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology provides original, peer-reviewed scientific articles for anyone involved with an infection control or epidemiology program in a hospital or healthcare facility. ICHE is ranked 13 out of 158 journals in its discipline in the latest Web of Knowledge Journal Citation Reports from Thomson Reuters.

SHEA is a professional society representing more than 2,000 physicians and other healthcare professionals around the world with expertise in healthcare epidemiology and infection prevention and control. SHEA's mission is to prevent and control healthcare-associated infections and advance the field of healthcare epidemiology. The society leads this field by promoting science and research and providing high-quality education and training in epidemiologic methods and prevention strategies. SHEA upholds the value and critical contributions of healthcare epidemiology to improving patient care and healthcare worker safety in all healthcare settings. Visit SHEA online at https://www.shea-online.org, https://www.facebook.com/SHEApreventingHAIs and @SHEA_Epi. 

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Giving adolescents and adults a booster shot of the whooping cough vaccine offers some protection against the infection - but not enough to prevent outbreaks, according to a new study.

To read the full article, click here. 

OXNARD, CALIF. – It’s on! The search for the ugliest dental bib clip in America, that is. Low-down dirty characters like “Rusty Chain”, “Bite Midler”, “Clip Cardashian” and “Eric Bib Holder” are among the contestants in a competition that is all for a good cause – breast cancer screening and diagnosis. In DUX Dental’s fifth annual Bib-Eze for Boob-Eze campaign, members of the public and the dental community are invited to raise money for Mammograms In Action by voting for the ugliest dental bib clip in America.

With the click of a mouse anyone can vote for the dental bib clip they find most offensive. In turn, DUX Dental will give a one-dollar donation to Mammograms In Action for each vote. Mammograms In Action is a non-profit breast cancer organization whose mission it is to provide funding for low-income and uninsured women and men who need screening and/or diagnostic procedures for the detection of breast cancer. Voting is open now at www.bibezeforboobeze.com and runs until Oct. 31, 2013.

“Research shows that despite everyone’s best efforts to help America’s dental bib clips get clean, they are still a source of bacteria in the dental office,” said Stacey Williams, director of marketing and sales for DUX Dental. “During last year’s Bib-Eze for Boob-Eze campaign dental offices around the country sent in hundreds of traditional bib holders in exchange for a donation to Mammograms In Action. We couldn’t believe how dirty, rusty and old some of the clips we received were. That was the inspiration for this year’s campaign.”

The bib clip contestants are:

1. Name: Smokey Burns

Home State: Colorado

Interesting Fact: Attended more than 20 Thankful Dead Concerts

2. Name: Rusty Chain

Home State: Tennessee

Interesting Fact: Currently on parole after being charged with harassing an autoclave

3. Name: Clip Lee

Home State: Michigan

Interesting Fact: Recently earned a green belt in Martial Arts

4. Name: Eric Bib Holder

Home State: Washington D.C.

Interesting Fact: Recently worked for a surveillance company but got burned out. Loves action movies

5. Name: Greeny Bulger

Home State: Massachusetts

Interesting Fact: Enjoys playing large games of hide and seek. He spends weekends watching mob movies

6. Name: Clip Cardashian

Home State: California

Interesting Fact: Loves rap music and being in front of the X-ray camera. She has a large bib holder family

7. Name: Lou Swartz

Hometown: Venice Beach

Interesting Fact: Enjoyed body building in the 1980s and appreciates a good spray tan to highlight his muscles.

8. Name: Bite Midler

Home State: New York

Interesting Fact: Currently starring in the off, off, off Broadway performance of Little Shop of Fear.

9. Name: Jolene Clipington

Home State: Texas

Interesting Fact: Her daughter recently competed in a toddler beauty pageant. She spends her free time bedazzling jeans and skeet shooting throughout Texas

10. Name: Curtis Lavender

Home State: Florida

Interesting Fact: Due to the extensive amount of time he’s spent in the autoclave, he is often mistaken for bib clips twice his age

Each visitor to www.bibezeforboobeze.com can vote one time. DUX Dental will make the final donation to Mammograms In Action after the completion of the campaign in late October and in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Mammograms In Action has a two-fold mission. It is committed to raising awareness and diagnosis of breast cancer in symptomatic people who are under the age of 40, and who thus often don’t meet the current requirements for screening that favor patients over 40. Secondly, the organization provides funding for screening and diagnostic procedures for people who otherwise don’t qualify for funding from the government or other charitable resources. These recipients have typically been turned away from screening because of their age, inability to pay, or because they have lost their health insurance and have no other means of payment.

About DUX Dental

DUX Dental has been manufacturing and distributing the highest level of dental products worldwide for more than 50 years. Based in the coastal city of Oxnard, Calif., with additional manufacturing and distribution facilities in Europe, DUX Dental is home to a world-class team of innovators who produce and service a portfolio of hundreds of dental products and supplies. DUX Dental is well known for its series of industry firsts including Zone Temporary Cement, Identic™ Alginate and Bib-Eze disposable bib holders, as well as its award-winning PeelVue+ sterilization pouches. Visit www.duxdental.com or contact duxoffice@duxdental.com  for more information about DUX Dental products.

About Mammograms In Action

Mammograms In Action is a 501(c)3 non-profit breast cancer organization whose mission it is to raise awareness of the incidence of breast cancer under the age of 40, and provide resources to those that typically would not have access to screening and diagnostic procedures for preventative purposes.

Zionna Munoz founded the organization in 2009 after her best friend was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 26. Due to her young age, there was little concern about the potential of breast cancer and she experienced many challenges in accessing breast health care services. Her courageous journey and strong survivor spirit inspired the creation of Barbells for Boobs and the Mammograms In Action^® Grant Program as a proactive voice and supportive resource in the fight against breast cancer. For more information visit www.mammogramsinaction.org.

Alsip, IL - GC America Inc. is excited to announce the new and improved formula of COE FOAM™ II, a rinseless, dripless, foaming germicidal cleanser and deodorant suitable for cleaning wood, stainless steel, porcelain and chrome. It effectively penetrates grease, grime and dirt. This ozone-friendly aerosol also cleans and sanitizes hard, washable surfaces without rinsing. 

The EPA compliant COE FOAM II is formulated to disinfect inanimate hard surfaces and deodorizes those areas which generally are hard to keep fresh smelling. This product demonstrates effective disinfection against Legionelle Pneumophila and is virucidal against HIV-1 (AIDS Virus), Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 and 2, Canine Parvovirus, Influenza A H1N1. 

The improved formula of COE FOAM II: 

 Kills more viruses, including MRSA on treated surfaces 

 Has a cleaner fresh scent 

 Now offers an enhanced wetting feature for complete disinfecting 

The new COE FOAM II is available now from GC America’s Authorized Dental Dealers. 

For more information on GC America and its complete product line, please visit www.gcamerica.com, contact your local GC America Representative or call toll free (800)323-3386. 

CHICAGO, IL– Hu-Friedy, a global leader in the manufacturing of dental instruments and products, today announced the North American launch of the Clear Collection, a new line of Orthodontic Clear Aligner Instruments. Set to launch globally later this year, the Clear Collection, offers Orthodontists four instruments that help accent, individualize and optimize the biomechanics of clear aligners in the office.

Due to the recent clear aligner trend in Orthodontics, Hu-Friedy in partnership with Hu-Friedy Thought Leader, Dr. S. Jay Bowman DMD MSD, designed the Clear Collection to help streamline the treatment process. Each instrument within the collection has a unique function that, when properly applied to clear aligners, allows for easier in-office adjustments and tweaks. Instruments include:

·      The Tear Drop- An instrument that creates a notch at the gingival margin of clear aligners where elastic hooks are required within the arch. It also provides a reservoir to hold the elastics in place, permitting easy manipulation of elastics by the patient.

·      The Vertical- Focuses on the over-correction of rotations by producing an indentation at the mesial or distal angles of a tooth. 

·      The Horizontal- Creates an indentation to accent individual root torque. Retention of either the clear aligners or retainers is enhanced by placing this indent into a tooth’s undercut or below a bonded attachment. 

·      The Hole Punch- Creates a half moon cutout for relief of clear aligners around bonded buttons used for elastics.  It also can nip away plastic to provide soft tissue clearance to prevent aligner impingement of tissue.

“Hu-Friedy’s Thought Leader program enables us to create cutting edge products inspired by professionals that are leaders in their field of dental expertise.” says Ken Serota, President of Hu-Friedy Mfg. Co., LLC “The Clear Collection is an example of this relationship, our collaboration with Dr. S. Jay Bowman led to the launch of a new generation of innovative orthodontic instruments designed to help ease the clear aligner experience for both the practitioner and the patient by allowing on-the-spot aligner modifications.”

For more information about Hu-Friedy’s Clear Collection, please call 1-800-HU-FRIEDY.

About Hu-Friedy

Founded in Chicago in 1908, Hu-Friedy Manufacturing Company, LLC helps dental professionals perform at their best by producing dental instruments and products designed to function as an extension of each practitioner's particular skill. Its products, hand-crafted by highly-skilled artisans, are known for their precision, performance, longevity, reliability and quality. Headquartered in Chicago, Hu-Friedy products are distributed in more than 75 countries and the company maintains offices in Rotterdam, Tuttlingen, Germany, Milan, Shanghai and Tokyo.

CHICAGO — The American Dental Association (ADA) is offering two updated dental coding books to help dentists stay up to date on the proper codes to use when billing their patients for dental procedures.

The new “CDT 2014” contains the Code on Dental Procedures and Nomenclature, which is the standard for recording dental services in patient records, on paper claim forms and on HIPAA standard electronic claim transactions. The new book is the only official source for the latest dental procedure codes. The manual has been improved to reflect real world dentistry such as:  

• Providing codes that clearly document a service to a patient

• Considering how the latest clinical advances and evidence-based dentistry affect the way you code

• Reducing your workload by eliminating the need for narrative reports for certain codes

• Developing more specific codes to the procedures you perform, including new codes for caries risk assessment and implants, and a new subcategory for carriers

The ADA worked with the American Association of Endodontists and the American Association of Orthodontists to revamp the endodontic and orthodontic sections to convey recent developments in these specialties. “CDT 2014” is a spiral bound book that lays flat for easy reference and includes a searchable CD-ROM for quick code look up. The CDT book (J014) is available for $39.95 for ADA members and $59.95 retail price. “CDT 2014” includes:

• 29 new procedure codes

• 18 revised procedure codes

• 4 deleted procedure codes

• 7 changes to the subcategories and their descriptors

• Fillable 2012 ADA Dental Claim Form

The ADA is also offering the “Dental Coding Made Simple: Resource Guide and Training Manual, 2013-2014” to help dentists and their staff understand the basics — and the complexities — of today’s dental coding system. “Dental Coding Made Simple” (J443) is available for $49.95 to ADA members and $74.95 retail price. Key features include:

• 151 of the most common questions and answers

• More than 25 coding exercises

• An illustrated dental implant section

• New HIPAA Compliant 2012 ADA Dental Claim Form and completion instructions

• Continuing education (CE) examination with five CE credits

The “CDT 2014/Dental Coding Made Simple Kit” (K214), which includes both the “CDT 2014” and “Dental Coding Made Simple” books, is $75.00 for ADA members and $112.50 retail price.

To purchase any of the books, please visit adacatalog.org or call the ADA Member Service Center at (800) 947-4746. All CDT products will ship by mid-August.

About the American Dental Association

The not-for-profit ADA is the nation's largest dental association, representing 157,000 dentist members. The premier source of oral health information, the ADA has advocated for the public's health and promoted the art and science of dentistry since 1859. The ADA's state-of-the-art research facilities develop and test dental products and materials that have advanced the practice of dentistry and made the patient experience more positive. The ADA Seal of Acceptance long has been a valuable and respected guide to consumer dental care products. The monthly The Journal of the American Dental Association (JADA) is the ADA's flagship publication and the best-read scientific journal in dentistry. For more information about the ADA, visit www.ada.org. For more information on oral health, including prevention, care and treatment of dental disease, visit the ADA’s consumer website www.MouthHealthy.org.

Winning one of the ADA Foundation's 2013 Allied Dental Student Scholarships has made starting over in life that much easier for dental assisting student Dawn Pettet.

Click here to go to the ADA site to read the full article. 

PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Without limitations on who it can affect, tooth decay remains one of the most prevalent, yet preventable diseases in our nation. The Pennsylvania Dental Association (PDA) reminds that a safe, effective and economical way to reduce occurrences is through the public health implementation of community water fluoridation.

Nearly all naturally occurring water sources contain fluoride—a mineral that has been proven to prevent, and even reverse, tooth decay. Water fluoridation involves regulating the amount of fluoride in the water to assure that the amount is at a safe and effective level for oral health. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) declare that based on numerous studies, fluoride at the recommended levels of less than or equal to one part per million is safe, with the most effective cavity fighting level being at 0.7ppm to 1.0ppm.

Documentation of the effectiveness of water fluoridation has been noted in scientific literature for more than 65 years. The American Dental Association (ADA) has stated that even before the first community fluoridation program began in 1945, data from the 1930s and 1940s revealed 50 to 60 percent lower tooth decay rates in children consuming naturally occurring, optimally fluoridated water compared to children consuming fluoride-deficient water.

Extensive research continues to indicate water fluoridation is one of the most effective public health measures in history. It has maintained its effectiveness of reducing tooth decay by 20 to 40 percent in adults and children, even during an era of wide availability of fluoride from other sources, such as fluoride toothpaste. 

The first step to ensuring all Pennsylvanians have preventive dental care is to fluoridate our public water systems. Adding fluoride to the drinking water ensures that everyone, regardless of age or income, receives valuable health benefits.

"Fluoride protects teeth against decay in two ways," says Dr. Alicia Risner-Bauman, PDA member and Tioga Dental Services Clinic Director, "in the tooth structure as the teeth are forming and in the mouth of children and adults." 

"Fluoride has been shown to be incorporated into the developing tooth structure, making the tooth stronger and less prone to decay or cavities," Dr. Bauman added. "When fluoride comes in contact with the tooth enamel, the fluoride ion (molecule) can bind with the tooth enamel and promote remineralization, the strengthening of weakened tooth structure." 

Currently, only 54 percent of Pennsylvanians are receiving optimally fluoridated water, with rural communities missing the benefits the most. People who live in these areas are in need of basic oral health care. Fifty-one percent of rural children receive regular dental services, compared to 61 percent of urban children. Community water fluoridation is needed to help improve the oral health and lives of all residents who live in rural Pennsylvania.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) proclaimed community water fluoridation as one of the most important public health achievements of the 20th century. It is one public health program that actually saves money. The average cost for optimally fluoridating a public water supply is approximately 51 cents per person a year. For every dollar invested in fluoridation, a person saves more than $80 in dental treatment costs. Fluoridation also would save money in the state Medicaid budget.

Dr. Bauman says she sees the ravages of dental decay every day.

"I treat children and adults who have had access to toothpaste, fluoride supplements and dentally applied fluoride. Unfortunately, these patients have well water that does not have fluoride occurring naturally. Therefore, even with access to the other fluoride sources, they still have cavities. These patients suffer from pain and infection every day, causing loss of time in school, loss of time at work. If we can provide something as simple as a naturally occurring mineral in the drinking water of a population to help prevent this unnecessary suffering, why would we not?"

About the Pennsylvania Dental Association

Founded in 1868, the Pennsylvania Dental Association (PDA) is comprised of approximately 6,000 member dentists. It is a constituency of the American Dental Association (ADA), the largest and oldest national dental society in the world. PDA's mission is to improve the public health, promote the art and science of dentistry and represent the interests of its member dentists and their patients. PDA is the voice of dentistry in Pennsylvania. For more information on PDA, visit the website at padental.org.