CDC may change COVID-19 isolation guidance
As reported in the Washington Post earlier this week, the CDC may soon change its COVID-19 isolation guidance from five days to people’s individual perception of their symptoms. The potential change was attributed to several unnamed CDC officials; NPR’s write-up of the Post article notes that the CDC hasn’t confirmed the report and that a spokesperson emailed that the agency has "no updates to COVID guidelines to announce at this time. We will continue to make decisions based on the best evidence and science to keep communities healthy and safe."
Top flossing mistakes
It’s hard enough getting many patients to floss, much less to do so the right way. This dentist-advised article from PureWow spells out some top flossing considerations and mistakes, including not choosing the right floss and neglecting back teeth.
EU to ban dental amalgam in 2025
Starting next year, mercury will no longer be used in fillings in the 27-country European Union following a deal made by the European Council and Parliament to “end the dental amalgam era” there. Terms of the deal include ending amalgam use in all EU countries on January 1, 2025 (with some exemptions) and phasing out amalgam manufacture, importing, and exporting.
ICYMI: ADA releases new clinical practice guideline for adolescent, adult pain management
The ADA developed and endorsed a new clinical practice guideline that recommends NSAIDs such as ibuprofen taken on their own or with acetaminophen as first-line treatments for managing short-term dental pain in adults and adolescents age 12 and over. The new guideline is similar in scope to the guideline the ADA released in August 2023 on pain management in pediatric patients but unlike the pediatric guideline, which states that the use of codeine and tramadol in children for managing acute pain is contraindicated, the adult and adolescent guideline includes clinical recommendations for prescribing opioids “in the limited circumstances” where opioids could be needed.
