Infectious Awareables E-Borne Newsletter ~ November 2006

[Note: We mail this E-Borne newsletter 4x/year +/- to friends, colleagues and suspecting customers of record. If we have mistakenly included you in this mailing, or you wish to be removed from our subscriber list, please refer to end of the newsletter for instructions. We'll miss you, but we promise to honor your request.]
AS THE LEAVES FALL. . .  

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Dear friends and colleagues,

Whatever happened to September and October! Beats us! We had barely stashed the sun block when visions of turkeys (the cranberry and gravy types) began to appear. Can nightmares of little drummer boys be far behind? This month marks Infectious Awareables, Inc.'s 9th anniversary - nine years since we bravely ventured into territory any (sane) person would fear to tread. Although we can't claim to be saner now, we do feel better knowing that YOU are reading this along with us. Enjoy our holiday preview - the options are to go out...there ;)

P.S. Watch for NEW BROCHURE, mailing first week of November.

1. MRSA AND ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE
 
AT A HOSPITAL OR COMMUNITY SETTING NEAR YOU

If you don't know much about Methicillin-resistant Staph aureus, get yourself a-googling, stat! This is a nasty, antibiotic-resistant pathogen that demands some serious attention and respect.

The impact of MRSA skin and invasive infections on hospitals, physicians, patients and more recently. . .the community-at-large. . .has become an acute, global public health issue. Historically, the MRSA/resistance problem has been primarily confined to the hospital setting. Genetic changes in the Staph organism, however, has resulted in strains distinct from the HA (hospital-acquired) variety, and have given rise to CA (community-associated)-MRSA, with separate considerations and treatment.

In one prominent form of CA-MRSA, the mutant strain of staph excretes a potent toxin which then attacks the immune system and destroys tissues. We thought the issue so important that we created our own MRSA design - toxin glow and all. The emergence of MRSA in the community underscores the importance of good hand and general hygiene, and of thoughtful, discriminate use of antibiotics. A reminder to us all that there are a bunch of rogue'crobes out there that are ever-genemorphing to have their way with us. Tell a friend.

Click here for MRSA 
tie
Click image for MRSA Tie

For more information on antibiotic resistance, visit (APUA), the Alliance for the Prudent Use of Antibiotics, whom we thank for their help in creating our design. www.apua.org.


2. BROCCOLI: ALIMENTARY ALLY?
 
AND THEN THERE'S BROCCOLI RESISTANCE

Met up with one of our favorite Aware-o-philes at the September ICAAC (Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy) meeting in San Francisco. Dr. Charles Pavia, always a little testy because we haven't yet created a Lyme Disease design, continues to ensure we're on the cutting edge of microbiology. With this in mind, we noted his poster presentation which concluded that an active compound in - BROCCOLI - inhibited growth of some serious infectious pathogens. This could mean that, along with its documented antitumor effects, the Green Crucifer might be helpful in preventing certain infections in cancer patients. It had to be Broccoli !!?? WHERE IS THE WORK ON BROWNIES, BUNDT AND BRULEE???


Click image for H.Pylori tie.
Broccoli image purposely unclickable.
Click image for H.Pylori tie

Anyway, one bacterial pathogen d-sixed by b-b-b-broccoli is H.PYLORI,famed ulcer-causing celeb. We've memorialized it on silk, and called it our "no worries" design. But that was before we heard about this broccoli thing...


3. BE KIND TO YOUR DENTIST
 
THE DENTIST IS (COULD BE) YOUR FRIEND

Here are some floss facts from The Dental Assistant magazine that will impress your dentist or hygienist:

  • Floss (silk) was invented around 1815 by a New Orleans dentist.
  • Unwaxed silk floss was first became commercially available in 1882.
  • Wax floss was introduced in the 1940's, followed by tape in the '50s.
  • Marks from flossing (or something) have been found on teeth of early humans.
  • Women are twice as likely to floss as men.
  • The average American will spend $7 on dental floss this year.

For some strategic dental care, you might consider our Dental Plaque designs for your preventive needs. Not only are the designs accurate (enamel, cocci, pellicle, microbulata), they are clinically proven to result in pain-free appointments - especially when gifted PRIOR to treatment! Do remember your dental persons this year - they tend to be so lonely.

Click image for Dental 
Plaque tie Click 
image for Dental Plaque scarf
Click images for Dental Plaque Tie, Scarf


4. SURVEILLANCE AND E.COLI
 
E.COLI OUTBREAK

The good news about the recent E.coli outbreak in the mid-West and California was the rapid isolation of the common element - in this case, spinach - and the identification of the sources (California farms). Thanks to a surveillance system set up as a result of the 1993 "Jack in the Box" outbreak, the CDC now coordinates links between public-health laboratories nationwide, "fingerprinting" the DNA of the bacterial offenders collected from victims. In this way, epidemiologists are able to more rapidly ". . .find large outbreaks when they are still in a small stage." Before this system was in place, big ones just got bigger - and fast! In case you've ever wondered, here's what a flagellated E.coli looks like in a digestible and far more fashionable config:

Click 
image for E.coli tie Click 
image for E.coli tie
Click images for E.coli Ties, Tan/Red and Navy/Gray

A sobering post-script: many of the major airlines banned spinach on all flights during the epidemic. Now THERE'S a reason to switch frequent-flier clubs!


5. MENTORING HAND HYGIENE
 

Just an FYI: recent studies show that a teacher's (mentor's) hand hygiene (HH) practices are the strongest predictor of student HH behavior, overriding what is often a human-naturely disconnect between HH knowledge (what we know) and HH behavior (what we do!). In other words, students (children, family, friends, others) will typically take a cue from someone they respect, and tend to mimic behavior - in this case, a really good behavior. Hmmm. . .


6. AMERICAN PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATION - BOSTON
 
NOV 4-8, 2006

It all started for us nine years ago, at APHA - Indianapolis. A great meeting, 15,000 committed and dedicated public health personna sharing the latest information and educational tools. Boston is fun. Still, we are planning to stay out of tunnels.


7. NEW AND NOW - AVAILABLE AND AWAREABLE
 

Antibody tie and Antibody scarf; Mold/fungi tie and Mold/fungi scarf; Avian Flu tie and Avian Flu scarf and dozens of other communicables for the truly couture- conscious!



Back at you next month with last-minute pleas for yule and yours. In the meantime, Happy Thanksgiving, pilgrims!

Awareably yours,


Roger P. Freeman, D.D.S. and the IA Team
Infectious Awareables

Copyright 2006 Infectious Awareables, Inc.

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