ADA CE Online 130 courses strong

Great new continuing education opportunities for dentists and staff developed by the ADA include scientific courses on preventing infective endocarditis, radiographic examinations and 18 training modules for dental assistants鈥攁ll new to ADA CE Online.

Now offering 130 different courses, ADA CE Online brings educational opportunities right into the office or home, allowing registrants to learn at their own pace, on their own time and at their own convenience. Course registration provides registrants access to the course content for one year from time of purchase.

“Prevention of Infective Endocarditis” details the 2007 American Heart Association’s recommendations for prophylactic antibiotics for the prevention of infective endocarditis as they relate to dentistry. The course includes prevention techniques and basic information about heart conditions and antibiotics.

“For dentists, the American Heart Association ‘Prevention of Infective Endocarditis’ recommendations is likely the most recognized paper in the medical or dental literature,” said Dr. Peter B. Lockhart, chair of the Department of Oral Medicine, Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, N.C. and member of the AHA Rheumatic Fever, Endocarditis and Kawasaki Disease Committee. “Given the controversy surrounding this issue of antibiotic prophylaxis for dental procedures, and the significant changes in the new 2007 AHA recommendations, all dentists should be familiar with the content of this document.”

Course participants who complete this course should be able to describe the changes in AHA guidelines, explain the reason for the changes, discuss basic prevention techniques for infective endocarditis and determine when it is reasonable to prescribe antibiotic prophylaxis.

The guidelines were also highlighted in a special supplement to the January Journal of the American Dental Association.

“Radiographic Examinations: Choosing the Right Patients and Equipment” was developed to educate participants about the recommendations updated by the ADA in collaboration with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2004. Recommendations seek to limit radiation exposure by emphasizing that routine radiographic examinations are not warranted and the decision to use radiography should be based on the patient’s health history, vulnerability to oral disease and the results of the clinical exam. The course also covers the technical aspects of choosing and using equipment.

For dental offices looking for courses for dental assistants, ADA CE Online offers a total of 18 courses that present dental team members great opportunities for in-office training, continuing education credit, personal development and topics covering all aspects of running a dental office.

“These courses will provide an easy, efficient, convenient and inexpensive way for dentists to train new staff or continue development of existing staff,” said Dr. Jeffrey Sameroff, a member of the ADA Council on Dental Practice and member of the ADA CE Online Advisory Committee.

“The CE Online courses are well written and have numerous pictures, tables and diagrams that enhance the text. A self-evaluation at the end of each course also provides written documentation that the course was completed successfully.”

CE Online sponsors include Futuredontics, Oral CDx, United Concordia Companies, Cigna and Guardian Life Insurance; CareCredit sponsors the featured practice management speaker.