Faculty & Staff News - School of Dentistry

Your natural teeth are priceless. Here’s how to protect and preserve them

Our natural teeth are a precious commodity. We only get one adult set, but sometimes they need rescuing. Enter endodontics.

Trulove becomes President of the American Board of Orthodontics

Dr. Timothy Trulove, DMD, MS, of Montgomery, Alabama was installed as the President of the American Board of Orthodontics (ABO) on April 23, 2023 at the annual conference of the American Association of Orthodontists in Chicago. He had served as the director of the southern component of the ABO since 2016.

Morlandt named first holder of school of dentistry’s Waite endowed professorship

Anthony Morlandt, D.D.S., M.D., F.A.C.S., was named first holder of the Peter D. Waite Endowed Professorship in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery by the University of Alabama System Board of Trustees during its April 2023 meeting.

Tilashalski awarded school of dentistry’s alumni association endowed professorship

Kenneth R. Tilashalski, D.M.D., was named the second holder of the University of Alabama School of Dentistry Alumni Association Endowed Professorship. The resolution appointing Dr. Tilashalski was approved by the Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama System at their April 2023 meeting.

Protect your smile from a common but dangerous cancer

Oral cavity (mouth) and oropharyngeal (throat) cancer is one of the most preventable and treatable cancers if caught early. Since early detection greatly increases positive outcomes, there’s no better time than now to schedule a checkup to protect your smile from this dangerous and potentially life-threatening disease.

For more than 50 years, Jack Lemons has provided a bridge between medical and technical

For much of his career, Jack Lemons, Ph.D., has been a man in the middle. Lemons has straddled the line between dentistry and engineering, providing a valuable link between those who create and improve dental and other medical devices, and those who actually use them.

Eighteenth annual symposium speakers announced

The eighteenth annual UAB School of Dentistry Scholars Symposium will be held Thursday, March 2, 2023. The symposium will feature Esra Sahingur, DDS, MS, PhD as keynote speaker and Ping Zhang, DDS, PhD as the faculty presenter. The day will begin with poster presentations held in UAB Hospital, West Pavilion Atrium from 12:00 p.m. until 2:00 p.m.

Arrasmith turned a dental injury into a dental career

An injury on the football field led to a career in dentistry for Warren Arrasmith, D.M.D.

Through COVID and construction, the SOD Staff Council works to keep morale high

Pulling people together can be difficult when you can’t physically get together. That was the challenge facing the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry Staff Council during much of Nancy Parsons’ recently completed 18-month term as council president.

Kase maintains connection with Ukrainian dental journal despite conflict

Not long after arriving at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry in 2017, Michael Kase DMD struck up an Instagram collaboration with an overseas oral surgeon, Eugene Fresenko PhD, who that same year was helping start a new dental journal.

Sonya Mitchell is retiring from the School of Dentistry to enter new phase of her career

A mere 25 years after graduating from the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry, Sonya Mitchell D.M.D., M.S.H.A., is about to enter private practice.

UAB SOD loses a ‘gentle soul’ with passing of longtime faculty member Perng-Ru Liu

The University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry recently lost a longtime and beloved faculty member with the passing of Perng-Ru Liu, DMD, DDS, MS.

Ging-HER-vitis? Women's health and oral health

Ask the Expert: Dr. Mia Geisinger

Chavali to join International Dentist Program leadership team

Ramakiran Chavali, B.D.S., M.S., has been appointed Assistant Director of the International Dentist Program (IDP) in the UAB School of Dentistry effective September 1.

Javed named Associate Dean for Research in UAB School of Dentistry

Amjad Javed, Ph.D., has been named associate dean for research at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry following a national search. He served in an interim capacity since 2018.

Ask the Expert: UAB School of Dentistry’s Dr. Nico Geurs shares the dangers of periodontal disease and how to keep your gums healthy

It is not uncommon for dental offices to use an image of a tooth in their signs or promotional materials. What you rarely see is an image of the gums. Yet gum health is an essential part of overall dental care. Nico Geurs, DDS, MS, Weatherford/Palcanis Endowed Professor and Chair in the Department of Periodontology at the UAB School of Dentistry, talks about the importance of not being dumb when it comes to the gums.

UAB School of Dentistry celebrates legacy of beloved instructor through endowment

Bryant G. “Don” Speed, D.M.D., a beloved instructor who taught in the UAB School of Dentistry Department of Orthodontics, passed away in 2014.

Ask the Expert: UAB School of Dentistry’s Dr. Kau highlights early orthodontic management in cleft lip and cleft palate patients

Cleft lip and cleft palate defects show up in approximately one of every 700 babies born worldwide. It is a condition that can cause feeding problems in infancy, and lead to social embarrassment for pre-teens. UAB School of Dentistry Professor and Chair at the Department of Orthodontics Chung H. Kau, BDS, MScD, Ph.D., works with more than 100 such infants each year through the Cleft and Craniofacial Center at Children’s of Alabama.

Dr. Kimberly Carr appointed Co-Director of UAB Sparks Dental Clinic

Kimberly R. Carr, D.M.D., M.A., has accepted the position of Co- Director of the UAB Sparks Dental Clinic. The announcement was made by Janice Jackson, D.M.D., chair of the UAB School of Dentistry’s Department of Pediatric Dentistry. The appointment is effective immediately due to Dr. Stephen Mitchell, the current Sparks Dental Clinic director, assuming the duties of director of the SOD International Dentistry Program.

Dental research network receives wide acceptance within scientific community

Since 2005, the UAB-led National Dental Practice-Based Research Network has conducted dozens of studies involving thousands of dental practitioners and patients. Now there is statistical evidence that the results of those efforts are being well received by the scientific community.