by Clinical Director Anne Bosy RDH, MEd, MSc(Oral Malodour)

The Fresh Breath Clinic^® as a unique facility, totally devoted to the treatment of bad breath, has earned a track record of the highest calibre.  The facility will continue to improve and grow in keeping with our goal of providing the most effective service possible for those experiencing this debilitating condition.  The philosophy of the clinic is to be dynamic in our approach to the assessment and treatment of the bad breath condition and to incorporate new methods as soon as we can develop them.

Perhaps one of the greatest rewards of the clinical operation is the satisfaction that we have from our successes.  We see a change in the image and ego state of our clients that is at times quite dramatic.  This helps greatly to offset some of the difficulties and frustrations that we experience when, with all our skills and knowledge, we cannot fully address the problems presented to us.  Although we can already claim an industry-leading success rate, I look forward to the time that this can be improved.

Current Operation

The Fresh Breath Clinic^® is now in its fourteenth year of operation.  The clinic has attracted individuals with chronic oral malodour problems from all walks of life in the international community.  We have successfully treated many thousands of clients from more than 30 countries. The service provided consists of an analysis of the problem using such aids as the Halimeter, gas chromatography, highly detailed microbiological tests and expert clinicians, followed by individualised treatment of the problem and dedicated longterm support.  Follow-up includes retesting, observation, and retreatment when necessary.

History

The Fresh Breath Clinic^® has been in operation since 1993 as an assessment and treatment centre for bad breath and bad taste problems.  When the Halitosis Assessment Clinic (HAC) at the University of Toronto closed in the spring of that year, many former clients were left without a clinical facility to treat their problem.  The idea for the Fresh Breath Clinic^® was developed, along with Dr. Geller, to make available an opportunity for those individuals who had been clients at the HAC as well as to provide a clinical setting for people who were seeking oral malodour treatment.

In September, 1993, we rented a dental office for one half-day a week to assess and treat oral malodour.  We grew and moved to our present location in 1995 and are now an established treatment centre open 5 days per week, providing a unique and essential service to an international clientele.   The Fresh Breath Clinic^® has gone through several phases of development and we are proud of where we are today. We have learned a lot and have made a substantial contribution to the understanding of this very distressing problem.  Our assessments and treatments are unique and successful.  Our outreach is international.

We have been members of the International Society for Breath Odor Research (ISBOR) since 1995.  This Society meets every two years for the purpose of scientific presentations and discussions and we have contributed through papers and presentations.  Any scientific and pharmaceutical advances reported at this conference or through publications are reviewed for possible changes to our protocol in order to make our clinic more effective.  Our goal is to provide our clients with the most up-to-date testing mechanisms and treatment available anywhere in the world.

In looking back, it is curious how all this came about.  Career changes are a part of life that sometimes come unexpectedly.  Involvement in oral malodour came as a surprise even to myself.  An unexpected call to work on a research project at the Faculty of Dentistry introduced me to the whole concept of oral malodour.  Dr. Mel Rosenberg, a microbiologist, was investigating the efficiency of the sulphide monitor as a test for sulfur content in mouth air (baseline research for the present-day Halimeter).  For this purpose we had to have subjects who had measurable sulfur odors.  An advertisement for subjects brought hundreds of calls and along with them, my introduction to the problem of bad breath.

The desperation of those that were afflicted by the problem and the fact that its prevalence appeared to be of epidemic proportions affected me greatly.  The need for research and clinical studies in this area was obvious.  Since academic leave was available from my faculty position at George Brown College, I undertook to complete a Master of Science degree specializing in oral malodour.  This led to the establishment of the Halitosis Assessment Clinic at the University.  The clients that attended this clinic were informative about their common problem, and cooperative with my various phases of research.  To them I owe much of my background in this area.

	ANNE BOSY, aka the "BREATH DOC": Professor, Researcher, Clinical Director & Co-Founder of Toronto's Fresh Breath Clinic. In addition to receiving her Dental Hygiene diploma from the University of Toronto, Anne Bosy also completed a Bachelor of Science Degree, a Master of Education Degree and a research Master of Science Degree at the University of Toronto. Anne became the first person to attain a Master of Science in Oral Malodour at the University and gained international recognition as a result of her ground-breaking research.
Anne's extensive research was directed at populations with persistent oral malodour, or bad breath. This research led to some pivotal findings that oral malodour, originally associated mainly with periodontitis, was as prevalent in individuals that had healthy tissues. Further, there was no significant difference in the intensity of the odour between the two groups. This expertise led to the development of the Fresh Breath Clinic in Toronto and presented many opportunities for lecturing on the topic of bad breath, both internationally and locally. The Fresh Breath Clinic utilizes techniques developed by Anne during her continuing scientific research on oral malodour. Anne gained international recognition when she organized and operated the Halitosis Assessment Clinic at the University of Toronto for three years until its successful completion in 1993. The Fresh Breath Clinic was founded in November of that year. Anne has also presented her research in Oral Malodour at The International Association of Dental Research, and at research symposia in Canada, the United States and Europe. Anne has authored numerous published research articles on the topic of oral malodour in international dental journals as well as the popular press. She has been featured on media shows such as Doctor on Call, Breakfast Television and Marketplace. A more detailed list of media appearances can be found here. As a professor at Toronto's George Brown College, Anne designed numerous courses for the programs in the Centre for Health Sciences, one of which was Nutrition and Nutritional Assessment for the dental hygiene program. Anne's commitment to dental hygiene education has helped her develop considerable expertise in nutrition and its importance in maintaining healthy oral tissues. Anne also developed expertise in microbiology and oral biofilm through her involvement as an educator and as a clinician at the Fresh Breath Clinic. Anne is also a specialized clinician at the Fresh Breath Clinic, which she co-founded in 1993 with dentist Dr. Julian Geller. The clinic assists thousands of patients annually with malodour issues.
	JULIAN GELLER  DDS., M.Sc.D. Graduated from the University of Toronto, Faculty of Dentistry and with a Diploma and Masters degree in Children's Dentistry from the University of Indiana. Julian shares Anne's commitment in helping those individuals who suffer from conditions associated with bad breath. He co-founded the Fresh Breath Clinic with Anne Bosy in 1993, and has co-authored research papers on the subject of oral malodour. Currently Dr. Geller has a practise specialising in Children's Dentistry and is a Clinical Instructor in the Children's Department of the Faculty of Dentistry at the University of Toronto.