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  • Take Care of Your Smile

    Nearly everyone knows that brushing your teeth at least twice a day, flossing daily and visiting the dentist regularly are key to good oral hygiene and health. But did you know that what you drink - and when and how you consume it - can impact your dental health as well?Sugar-sweetened beverages

  • Military Health System (MHS) leadership message - MTF continuous improvement

    After more than a decade of war and in a period of national evolution in concepts of health care, the Military Health System (MHS) must reengineer processes by which we bring health to the 9.6 million beneficiaries we serve. We have embarked on a shared strategy to prepare the MHS to successfully

  • DoD Anti-Tobacco Video Contest Now Open For Public Voting

    The Air Force community is encouraged to kick off 2014 by voting for the best anti-tobacco video in the Department of Defense-sponsored Fight the Enemy contest which begins now until March 14, 2014 through online voting.Five finalists have been selected for public voting, including two Air Force

  • U.S. Air Force and Israeli Defense Force Surgeons General sign agreement

    The surgeon general of the U.S. Air Force and his counterpart in the Israeli Defense Force signed an agreement Feb. 5 in Israel to reaffirm their mutual commitment to collaboration between the Air Force Medical Service and the IDF Medical Corps.Lt. Gen. (Dr.) Thomas Travis and Brig. Gen. (Dr.)

  • Electronic cigarette use increasing among Airmen

    Electronic cigarette use is becoming a popular alternative to traditional cigarettes, but the upward trend is becoming a concern for health care providers. The battery-operated products, known as e-cigarettes, are designed to deliver nicotine, flavor, and other chemicals as a vapor that is inhaled

  • Air Force Medical Service announces new senior enlisted advisor

    The Air Force Surgeon General, Lt. Gen. (Dr.) Thomas W. Travis, announced today that Chief Master Sgt. E. Jason Pace, Chief, Medical Enlisted Force, United States Forces in Europe (USAFE), will now take on the top AFMS-enlisted job in the United States Air Force.Chief Pace will assume the new

  • Fluoride: What Do I Need to Know?

    Fluoride is a form of the naturally occurring element fluorine. Fluoride has been proven to be very effective at preventing cavities and making teeth resistant to the bacteria that live in our mouths. The optimal level of fluoride to actually achieve these positive results is very small. The

  • Air Force Medical Service 2013 annual award winners announced

    It is with great pride that the Surgeon General's Medical Force Development Directorate announces the winners of the Air Force Medical Service Annual Award competition. The competition included individual and team awards, based on criteria outlined in AFI 36-2856, Medical Service Awards. The winners

  • Gum chewing: a healthy habit

    Did you know that gum chewing can help prevent dental disease? A 2008 review in the Journal of the American Dental Association stated that chewing sugar free gum for 20 minutes after meals can help prevent tooth decay. When you chew gum it stimulates the production of saliva in your mouth. Saliva is

  • Former Air Force Surgeon General passes away

    The Air Force Medical Service remembers retired Lt. Gen. (Dr.) Paul W. Myers, former Air Force Surgeon General, who passed away of natural causes on Nov. 25, 2013 in San Antonio, Texas.Myers was the 10th surgeon general and sworn in on Aug. 1,1978 until July 31, 1982.  He officially retired on Dec.

  • Annual exams crucial for early detection of oral cancer

    Annual exams at a dental clinic begin with an oral cancer screening. Unbeknownst to many, the dentist is the first line of defense when it comes to early detection of oral cancer.This is important given that mortality rates associated with oral cancer significantly decrease with early detection.

  • 3D x-ray helps 81st DS diagnosis, treatment

    "It's not your daddy's x-ray!"The 81st Dental Squadron offers state-of-the-art three-dimensional images to aid in diagnosis and treatment of a wide range of dental conditions, including reconstructive surgery.Maj. (Dr.) Jeffrey Ford, chief of orthodontics and officer-in-charge of radiology for the

  • Air Force dentist finishes first full Ironman

    Sixteen years ago, Col. Eric Cathey, director of dental programs and resources, Air Force Surgeon General, ran his first triathlon at Misawa AB, Japan, fell in love with the sport, and hasn't stopped running. The Air Force dentist finished his first full Ironman Triathlon Nov. 2 in Panama City

  • Air Force medical facilities earn top honors from The Joint Commission

    Three Air Force Medical Service military treatment facilities (MTFs) earned top accreditation honors recently by The Joint Commission, the leading accreditor of health care organizations in America, for exemplary performance and were named among the nation's Top Performers on Key Quality

  • Maintaining healthy gums can lead to better overall health

    More and more today physicians are focusing on overall bodily health as opposed to treating only specific ailments as they occur, to improve quality and longevity of life. This concept has also become more important to dentists as well since research during the past two decades has shed light on the

  • Worry about the enemy not a toothache

    You're in a deployed environment in the middle of nowhere, and the toothache you thought was the least of your worries stateside has come back with a painful vengeance. Yet, there is no dental facility on your forward operating base and the nearest one is 100 miles away. This toothache that could

  • TRICARE issues statement about government shutdown

     On October 1, 2013, the Defense Health Agency issued the following statement:"We know that those who rely on the Military Health System (MHS) are concerned about how the government shutdown might impact their health care.While we can't predict the exact consequences of a shutdown on every part of