Project focuses on oral health in Oklahoma

BY SUSAN SIMPSON
Published: March 7, 2009

The University of Oklahoma College of Dentistry will pilot a national project to educate rural Oklahomans about preventative oral health.

The college is among three selected by the American Dental Association to train a new type of worker — community dental health coordinators.

OU will train 18 coordinators as part of a five-year pilot program to raise awareness of preventative health and catch dental problems before they become severe.

"Our community doesn’t want dental health unless they have a toothache. That’s what we are trying to address,” said Jessica Johnson, a dental assistant from Clayton who will take 12 months of online courses from OU to become a community dental health coordinator. She won’t get paid as a coordinator, but her college courses are free as part of the pilot project.

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Green tea may improve dental health

Updated: 3/6/2009 5:00:11 PM

Before administering a nightly teeth cleaning, one may want to make a cup of green tea as a way to promote good dental health.

A new study, published in the Journal of Periodontology, has found the routine intake of green tea may promote the health of teeth and gums.
Researchers examined the periodontal health of 940 men and found those who drank green tea had significantly better dental health when compared to those who drank less green tea.

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Health Highlights

Jan. 31, 2009 01.30.09, 08:00 PM EST

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:

FDA Experts Recommend Banning Darvon

Darvon, a decades-old painkiller chiefly marketed as Darvocet, should be banned by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, an expert panel advising the agency recommended Friday.

The advisory panel voted 14-12 to recommend withdrawing Darvon, first approved in 1957. Earlier Friday, the agency said it was reviewing the drug after critics charged it provided little relief and posed a risk for overdose and suicide, the Associated Press reported. The full FDA usually follows the recommendations of its expert panels, but isn't bound to do so.

Darvon, which includes a dose of acetaminophen, is among the top prescribed medications. More than 20 million prescriptions were written in 2007, the wire service said. Xanodyne Pharmaceuticals and Qualitest/Vintage Pharmaceuticals, two firms that market Darvocet, called the medication safe and effective when used as directed.

But critics complained that the government review was too long in coming. "[The drug] has unique risks and no unique advantages," Dr. Sidney Wolfe, a drug safety expert with the consumer group Public Citizen, told the AP. "It has been a big drug of abuse for quite a long time." Public Citizen first sought a ban on Darvon in the 1970s, and the United Kingdom banned its version in 2005, the AP said.

Besides an outright ban, the FDA's other options include requiring stiffer warnings, additional studies or education efforts to alert doctors and patients of potential misuses, the AP reported.