Biodontics

Last updated March 14, 2019

Biodontics dentistry was founded by Dr. Edward Rossomando in 2001 as an area of oral health. Biodontics is funded by the United States National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR). The purpose of Biodontics is to expand the dental profession in its research capacity, skill sets, and entrepreneurship.^[1] An educational program known as the Biodontics Educational Program is held at the University of Connecticut School of Dental Medicine every July and assembles business leaders, entrepreneurs, management executives, scientists, architects, and dental manufacturers to give presentations and lectures to students from all dental schools.

Dentistry, also known as Dental and Oral Medicine, is a branch of medicine that consists of the study, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of diseases, disorders, and conditions of the oral cavity, commonly in the dentition but also the oral mucosa, and of adjacent and related structures and tissues, particularly in the maxillofacial area. Although primarily associated with teeth among the general public, the field of dentistry or dental medicine is not limited to teeth but includes other aspects of the craniofacial complex including the temporomandibular joint and other supporting, muscular, lymphatic, nervous, vascular, and anatomical structures.

The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) is a branch of the U.S. National Institutes of Health. The institute aims to improve the oral, dental, and craniofacial health through research and the distribution of important health information to the American people.

NIDCR funding and dental educational reform

New technologies and new educational models are believed by many to have disrupted and made obsolete the traditional models of dental education. The 1995 Institute of Medicine’s report, Dental Education at the Crossroads, suggested that dental schools must “continue efforts to increase the productivity of the dental work force, including appropriately credentialed and trained allied dental personnel”; and, “avoid policies to increase or decrease overall dental school enrollments.” The report’s recommendations stemmed from the fact that in 1993 six private dental schools closed; and many schools were plagued with inefficiencies which resulted in “gross wastes of student time [that added] to the student’s overcrowded week, squandering [of] patient time, and provided an inappropriate model of patient care.” Revisions in the process of accrediting dental schools was also recommended.

In 2002 the NIDCR began an initiative to fund experimental educational programs in dental schools across the country. The Biodontics Educational Program is one such program.^[2]

Biodontics Educational Program

The Biodontics Educational Program (BEP) is held annually in July. The first class was made up of nine students from UConn; while the 2006 class was made up of 24 students from the Howard University, Marquette University, UConn, and New York University (NYU) dental schools. The program consisted of lectures and presentations from business leaders, entrepreneurs, management executives, scientists, architects, and dental manufacturers. New technologies, such as probiotics, dental lasers, as well as business practices including Kaizen training, were included in the program to offer students a wide range of experience. The rationale in exposing dental students to a wide range of fields is to prepare them for owning their own businesses and managing these businesses, and incorporating new technologies at a faster rate.

Howard University is a private, federally chartered historically black university (HBCU) in Washington, D.C. It is categorized by the Carnegie Foundation as a research university with higher research activity and is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

Marquette University is a private research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Established by the Society of Jesus as Marquette College on August 28, 1881, it was founded by John Martin Henni, the first Bishop of Milwaukee.

New York University (NYU) is a private research university spread throughout the world. Founded in 1831, NYU's historical campus is in Greenwich Village, New York City. As a global university, students can graduate from its degree-granting campuses in NYU Abu Dhabi and NYU Shanghai, as well as study at its 12 academic centers in Accra, Berlin, Buenos Aires, Florence, London, Los Angeles, Madrid, Paris, Prague, Sydney, Tel Aviv, and Washington, D.C.

The American Biodontics Society

The American Biodontics Society was formed in 2005 with the mission to promote an active, expanding profession that is adaptable and accountable to new technologies and procedures, thereby improving the general oral health of the United States and enhancing its accessibility. The ABS acts as a forum for the detailed evaluation, discussion, and analysis of innovations in dentistry. The ABS has chapters developed or developing at New York University (NYU), Howard University, UConn, and Marquette University.

The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United States or America, is a country composed of 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. At 3.8 million square miles, the United States is the world's third or fourth largest country by total area and is slightly smaller than the entire continent of Europe's 3.9 million square miles. With a population of over 327 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous country. The capital is Washington, D.C., and the largest city by population is New York City. Forty-eight states and the capital's federal district are contiguous in North America between Canada and Mexico. The State of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east and across the Bering Strait from Russia to the west. The State of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U.S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, stretching across nine official time zones. The extremely diverse geography, climate, and wildlife of the United States make it one of the world's 17 megadiverse countries.

Dental Hypotheses(ISSN: 2155-8213) is the official publication of the American Biodontics Society.

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The Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) is a public medical school in Charleston, South Carolina. It opened in 1824 as a small private college aimed at training physicians. It is one of the oldest continually operating schools of medicine in the United States and the oldest in the Deep South. The school's main building was designed by Charleston architect Albert W. Todd.

The New York University College of Dentistry is the dentistry school of New York University. As the 3rd oldest dentistry school in the United States, it offers both graduate programs and clinical training in oral healthcare.

The Harvard School of Dental Medicine (HSDM) is the dental school of Harvard University. It is located in the Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. In addition to the DMD degree, HSDM offers specialty training programs, advanced training programs, a Ph.D. program through the Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and Master of Medical Sciences & Doctor of Medical Sciences degrees through Harvard Medical School. Being highly selective, admission into the pre-doctoral DMD program, as well as into the post-doctoral residency programs, is fiercely competitive. At its heart, the program considers dentistry a specialty of medicine. Therefore, all students at HSDM experience dual citizenship in both Harvard School of Dental Medicine and Harvard Medical School.

UConn Health is the branch of the University of Connecticut that oversees clinical care, advanced biomedical research, and academic education in medicine. The main branch is located in Farmington, Connecticut, in the US. It includes a teaching hospital, the UConn School of Medicine, School of Dental Medicine, and Graduate School. Other smaller branches exist in Storrs and Canton. The university owns and operates many smaller clinics around the state that contain UConn Medical Group, UConn Health Partners, University Dentists and research facilities.

Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences is one of the three medical universities in Tehran, the capital of Iran. It began in 1961 with the establishment of the Schools of Medicine and Dentistry. Following the merging of some of the treatment and educational units and organizations affiliated to the then Ministry of Health and “Melli University” in 1986, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences began its activities independently.

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The American Dental Education Association (ADEA), founded in 1923 as the American Association of Dental Schools, is a non-profit association representing academic dentistry and based in Washington, D.C. It is known as The Voice of Dental Education.

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Martha Somerman was born on March 13, 1947, in Brooklyn, N.Y., U.S.A. She was appointed the Director of the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) in 2011. She was formerly the Dean of the School of Dentistry at the University of Washington, a position she held from 2002.

Dental Hypotheses is a quarterly peer-reviewed open access medical journal covering all aspects of dentistry. It was established in 2010 by Jafar Kolahi and Edward F. Rossomando. The journal is published by Medknow Publications and the editor-in-chief is Edward F. Rossomando. It is an official journal of the American Biodontics Society and the Center for Research and Education in Technology.

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[1] "Biodontics".

[2] "The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research".