Author: PerioFoundation

“Apart from helping me financially, this award has strengthened my commitment to dental education. I will be in academics for life,” says Satheesh Elangovan, BDS, ScD, DMSc, a 2011 Abram and Sylvia Chasens Teaching and Research Fellow. Dr. Elangovan is currently an Assistant Professor at the University of Iowa College of Dentistry. He is also the AAP Foundation’s 2008 Tarrson Regeneration Scholar.

Dr. Elangovan’s research is currently focused on developing novel biomaterials for bone and periodontal regeneration. He is also working on a few clinical research projects including prospective trials and retrospective studies. Apart from research, Dr. Elangovan directs a course for second year dental students and a seminar type course for residents, and also lectures in multiple other courses for first and third year dental students. “Teaching is awesome,” says Dr. Elangovan, “every day of the week I’m doing different things that excite me.”

Through his academic work, Dr. Elangovan hopes to enhance evidence-based periodontics and contribute to periodontology through tissue engineering research. He is grateful to the Chasens family for the help this award has provided. He says, “Dr. Chasens is one of my role models, and it is very meaningful for me to receive this award the year we lost Dr. Chasens. I will do my best to honor his legacy through my work.”

In 2009, the AAP Foundation introduced the The Nevins Teaching and Clinical Research Fellowship, created to address the retention of top periodontal clinical researchers and educators early in their careers. The award was created by generous donors in honor of Myron Nevins, DDS, a leader in periodontal clinical research.

The award’s inaugural recipient was Salvador Nares, DDS, MS, PhD, Graduate Program Director at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Dentistry. Dr. Nares teaches at both the predoctoral and postdoctoral levels. At the predoctoral level, Dr. Nares introduces students to the surgical procedures a periodontist would perform through a hands-on surgical lab.

When asked why he chose to specialize in periodontics, Dr. Nares cites “the tremendous challenge of what we know about periodontal disease. When we try to understand disease and wound healing, biology, microbiology and immunology all come together to impact periodontal disease. I enjoy this deeper understanding; the science of what makes things tick and how we can help patients.”

Since receiving the Nevins award, Dr. Nares was promoted to Graduate Program Director, has submitted manuscripts with two in review, and applied for National Institute of Health funding. He hopes to become the Chair of a periodontal program someday, keep his research going, and continue to publish and teach.

The 2010 recipient of the AAP Teaching Fellowship is Luciana Shaddox, DDS, MS, PhD. Dr. Shaddox is currently a tenured associate professor in the Department of Periodontology at the University of Florida. She holds a dual appointment with the Department of Oral Biology.

Dr. Shaddox is currently researching the causes of aggressive periodontitis in children, the mechanisms of disease initiation and progression, immune response, microbial flora and treatment response. She is in her fourth year of a National Institutes of Health grant for this project, and is also conducting a separate study evaluating the association of diabetes and periodontitis.

About 70% of Dr. Shaddox’s time is spent on research, the other 30% is spent teaching and mentoring. She is the course director of the Introduction to Clinical Diagnosis and Treatment Planning in Periodontology, and teaches over 200 students at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.

Dr. Shaddox says, “I’m very honored to receive this award. It helps to confirm that I’m on the right path. Since receiving this award, I have become more aware of how important our role as educators is in the lives of new dentists and periodontists, and what a privilege it is to serve in this capacity.”

“I can’t begin to tell you the freedom this award has allowed me to pursue the training that I needed both in research and the clinical setting,” says Kevin Guze, DMD, DMSc. Dr. Guze is the 2010 recipient of the Richard J. Lazzara Fellowship in Advanced Implant Surgery, sponsored by Biomet 3i. He serves as a postgraduate periodontal faculty member at the Harvard School of Dental Medicine, Department of Oral Medicine, Infection and Immunity.

Dr. Guze’s current work is focused on bone regeneration. He is comparing platelet-derived growth factor and bone morphogenetic protein in vertical and horizontal ridge augmentations, looking at a new prominin peptide, conducting in vivo studies, and doing a retrospective analysis on implant failure. Over the past year, Dr. Guze has been clinically active in working on complex restorative cases, working directly with the restorative dentistry department on the finer details of restorative dentistry. Dr. Guze says, “I’ve had opportunities to teach and my research has been a very enjoyable part of my experience. I’m able to involve myself in projects that I feel will one day make an impact on how we practice regenerative dentistry.”

Between being a husband and father to three children and his work, Dr. Guze says there is little time for anything else. This fall, however, he is planning a trip to Israel where he will work in a clinic that serves underprivileged children who represent Israelis of all faiths. “I consider it an honor to go there,” says Dr. Guze. He adds, “It expensive to go, but you come back a lot richer than when you went.”

When commenting on his award, Dr. Guze says, “This award was pivotal for me. If I had needed to go into private practice to support my family, I don’t know if I would have been able to jump back into academia. I have been given the time to discover what will work for me and for my family. This has been a career changing gift.”

“I feel better and better each day that I teach. I consider myself a privileged individual for having a job that I love in a wonderful institution. At the same time, having the ability to positively influence the careers and lives of the students with whom I interact makes it feel even better. My own personal experiences as a student helped me understand the importance of mentorship, therefore, I try my best to inspire and support pre- and post-doctoral students alike. I think my progression over the past two years has been tremendous in part because of the peace of mind afforded by the AAP Foundation Teaching Fellowship I was awarded in 2011; I can focus on being the best teacher and researcher I can be without worrying about finances,” says Gustavo Avila-Ortiz, DDS, MS, PhD.

Dr. Avila-Ortiz is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Periodontics at the University of Iowa College of Dentistry and a 2011 AAP Teaching Fellow. Dr. Avila-Ortiz completed his DDS and PhD in his hometown of Granada, Spain, before moving to Michigan to attain his MS and certificate in Periodontics.

Currently, Dr. Avila-Ortiz’s research spans a number of clinical topics, including alveolar ridge preservation, surgical and restorative outcomes of implant therapy, the influence of different local and systemic factors on the outcomes of implant site development procedures and the link between systemic diseases and peri-implantitis. He directs the didactic periodontal course for first-year dental students and a periodontal literature review seminar for periodontal residents. He also participates as a lecturer in several courses in Periodontics and one in Oral Epidemiology. He participates as a seminar leader in a problem-based learning session for second-year students, and regularly supervises the clinical activities of third and fourth-year predoctoral students and periodontal residents. Dr. Avila-Ortiz also maintains an intramural private practice restricted to Periodontics and Oral Implantology. He is the current Chair of the AAP Foundation New Century Committee and the President of the Local AADR, Iowa section. He is also a visiting professor of the Master in Oral Implantology at the University of Sevilla (Spain).

Dr. Avila-Ortiz is happily married to his wife, Irene, since September 2011. After getting married, she came to the U.S. permanently. Between the expenses of home buying and application fees for permanent residency, Dr. Avila-Ortiz acknowledges that the financial aspect of the award was extremely helpful at a critical period of his life. In addition, he says, “This award helps me to feel supported to pursue excellence in all I do: teaching, research, administration, and patient care. I feel this award comes with a certain level of expectation, and I am very motivated to exceed those expectations.”

Since receiving the AAP Foundation’s Educator Scholarship in 2007, Flavia Q. Pirih, DDS, PhD, has proven that her career was a worthy investment of Foundation resources. Dr. Pirih is currently an Assistant Professor and Pre-doctoral clinic director at the University of California, Los Angeles. Dr. Pirih has served as Ambassador for the AAP Foundation since her residency at the University of Michigan. Dr. Pirih’s main research interest is in periodontal disease initiation, development and peri-implantitis.

Since receiving the Educator Scholarship, Dr. Pirih received the Young Investigator Award from the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research, was a finalist for the Balint Orban Research Competition hosted by the American Academy of Periodontology and took first place in the Graduate Student Forum hosted by the Midwest Society of Periodontology.

Dr. Pirih has known that she wanted to be an educator since dental school, and credits her AAP Foundation Scholarship with helping her get there. She says, “If I had not received this award, I probably would not be here right now; I don’t know if I could have done it without the AAP Foundation.” Dr. Pirih’s goal going forward is to stay at the University, do research, educate, and encourage students to get involved in periodontology and become educators themselves.