Page 36 - Dentistry Magazine 2021

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DENTISTRY 2021
OTHER NOTABLE RESEARCH ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Rethinking prosthetic limbs. Conrado Aparicio, PhD, received a $750,000, three year Department of Defense grant in June 2020 to study infection rates for patients with bone-integrated prosthetic limbs. He hopes to duplicate the concept of dental implants, anchored into the jaw or maxilla, in prosthetic limbs. “Our lab has done a lot of work over the years on preventing peri- implantitis,” said Aparicio. “We get inspiration from
our work with dental implants and molecular and cell processes that already exist in nature, including teeth, nails, claws and even antlers that go through the skin
and generally do not become infected.” In 2021, the grant funds were transferred to new principal investigator Isha Mutreja, PhD, research assistant professor in the Division of Biomaterials.
Thinking outside the box. The School of Dentistry’s 17th annual Research Day, held virtually in March 2021, featured a keynote address from Darnell Kaigler, Jr., DDS, MS, associate professor of dentistry at the University
of Michigan. He asserted that Einstein’s claim that “the greatest scientists are always artists...includes dentists
as well,” outlining a patient-centered, personalized approach to care. School of Dentistry researchers pro- vided updates on their studies and how they embraced creativity and unconventional methods in their research.
Oral cancer work gets noticed. Nelson Rhodus, DMD, MPH, director of the Division of Oral Medicine, was elected to the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, became an Honorary Fellow of the American Acade- my of Oral Medicine and was awarded a Certificate of Appreciation from the Philippine Dental Association in spring 2021. The accolades recognized his work in oral cancer screening, detection and treatment. “The fact that everything we’re doing is being recognized is really rewarding,” Nelson reflected on receiving the honors. “But really, the biggest reward isn’t the recognition. It’s knowing that what I do is helping diagnose cancer early, so people can survive. That’s the bottom line.”
Advocating for comprehensive oral health. In August of 2020, Cyndee Stull, RDH, MDH, DHSc, director of
the Division of Dental Hygiene, and Elise Sarvas, DDS, MS, MPH, clinical associate professor in the Division of Pediatric Dentistry, were honored by the Journal of the American Dental Association, who published their article “Parent perceptions of dental care providers’ role in human papillomavirus prevention and vaccine advocacy” as the August 2020 cover story. In August of 2021, Sarvas and colleagues from the Division of Pediatric Dentistry were responsible for the JADA cover story, a paper entitled “Oral health needs among youth with a history of foster care: A population-based study.” Sarvas has shared her expertise on oral health care for young children with a variety of outlets, including Inforum NewsMD, MinnPost and more.