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September 16, 2009

CHICAGO--The American Academy of Periodontology awarded excellence in the field of periodontology among members at its 95th annual meeting Sept. 12-15, 2009, in Boston, Mass.

Awards were presented by Immediate Past President Dr. David Cochran and 2010 President Dr. Samuel Low.

"I am proud to honor my colleagues and praise them for their time and efforts throughout the years," said Dr. Low. "This year's award winners are indicative of the many continued successes we have had in the specialty of periodontics."

Individual awards
The Gold Medal Award is the highest honor bestowed by the academy and is sponsored by Sunstar Americas. This year the Academy recognized Dr. Michael K. McGuire for his contributions to the field of periodontics.

Dr. McGuire has contributed to clinical research through innovative studies on a number of periodontal therapies, and his lectures captivate national and international audiences. In addition to maintaining a full-time private practice, Dr. McGuire has chaired many academy committees and task forces in scientific and clinical practice areas, and he was a driving force as chair of the Task Force on a 2020 Vision for the Academy and the profession.

He is on the Editorial Advisory Board of the Journal of Periodontology and has served as president of the American Academy of Periodontology and the AAP Foundation.

The Master Clinician Award, sponsored by Hu-Friedy, recognized Dr. James T. Mellonig for the consistent clinical excellence he has demonstrated and practiced in periodontics. Dr. Mellonig has served on many AAP committees, and was the academy president in 1996.

Dr. Mellonig also acted as director and chairman of the American Board of Periodontology. With his academic career in the Navy and at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Dr. Mellonig is a teacher and mentor to many in periodontics.

The Distinguished Service Award recognized Dr. Kenneth A. Krebs for his distinguished service to the AAP during several decades. Starting as an AAP volunteer in 1978, Dr. Krebs has served on more than 25 AAP committees and task forces, as well as on the Board of Trustees.

He moved through the officer ranks to serve as academy president in 2006. Dr. Krebs volunteered his time while maintaining a private practice and teaching at Northwestern's dental school until it closed in 2001.

The Distinguished Scientist Award, sponsored by Procter & Gamble Professional Oral Health, honored Dr. Sigmund Socransky for his contribution to the science and discipline of periodontology. Upon completing training in periodontics, he accepted a position at the Forsyth Dental Center where he has been a scientist for nearly 50 years.

More than 30 years ago, Dr. Socransky employed anaerobic microbiology techniques to have a fresh look at the flora of healthy gingival crevices, and periodontal pockets. His findings changed the understanding of the role of specific bacteria involved in periodontal disease initiation and progression.

The Outstanding Periodontal Educator Award, sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline, recognized Dr. Jack Caton for his contributions as a teacher and mentor. Dr. Caton is professor of clinical dentistry, director of the Advanced Training Program in Periodontics, and chair of the Division of Periodontics at the Eastman Institute for Oral Health, School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Rochester.

Dr. Caton has received the American Academy of Periodontology's Gold Medal Award, the William J. Gies Award for contributions to periodontal literature, and the American Dental Association's Norton M. Ross Award for Excellence in Clinical Research. He has been a director and former chairman of the American Board of Periodontology, a past president of the American Academy of Periodontology, is incoming president of the American Academy of Periodontology Foundation, and is on the editorial advisory board of the Journal of Periodontology.

This year's Humanitarian Award honored Dr. William C. Sasser for the donation of his time and expertise to benefit the underserved. Dr. Sasser has been involved in dental volunteer work since 1993. His endeavors include consulting and volunteering at free clinics in his hometown of Charleston, S.C., as well as participating in international dental mission service projects through a number of different Christian organizations.

This includes Global Health Outreach where he serves as a dental specialty coordinator. Dr. Sasser has traveled overseas to 20 different countries to donate services, and is the founder of Dental Community Fellowship--a mission outreach to undergraduate dental students.

The academy presented an Honorary Membership to Dr. Eiji Funakoshi for his contributions to periodontology. Dr. Funakoshi has been aniInternational member of the American Academy of Periodontology since 1971, as well as a past president of the Japanese Academy of Clinical Periodontology. Dr. Funakoshi is also a member of the Executive Board of the Japanese Society of Periodontology. Dr. Funakoshi is currently a clinical professor in periodontics at Kyushu University School of Dentistry in Fukuoka, Japan.

Research and literature awards
The Clinical Research Award is sponsored by Quintessence Publishing Company and honors a published scientific manuscript that has direct clinical relevance and application to the practice of periodontics.

Authors Steven Offenbacher, DDS, PhD, MMSc; James D. Beck, DDS, PhD; Kevin L. Moss; Luisito Mendoza; David W. Paquette, DMD, DMSc; David A. Barrow, PhD; David J. Couper, PhD; Dawn D. Stewart; Karen L. Falkner, PhD; Susan P. Graham; Sara Grossi, DDS, MS; John C. Gunsolley, DDS, MS; Theresa Madden, DDS, PhD; Gerardo Maupome, PhD; Maurizio Trevisan, MD, MS; Thomas E. Van Dyke, DDS, PhD; and Robert J. Genco, DDS, PhD, were honored for their paper "Results from the Periodontitis and Vascular Events (PAVE) Study: A Pilot Multicentered, Randomized, Controlled Trial to Study Effects of Periodontal Therapy in a Secondary Prevention Model of Cardiovascular Disease." This article was published in the February 2009 issue of the Journal of Periodontology.

The R. Earl Robinson Regeneration Award is sponsored by the American Academy of Periodontology Foundation and honors an outstanding published scientific article on periodontal regeneration in the basic or clinical sciences.

Authors Masahiro Kitamura, Keisuke Nakashima, Yusuke Kowashi, Takeo Fujii, Hidetoshi Shimauchi, Takashi Sasano, Toshi Furuuchi, Mitsuo Fukuda, Toshihide Noguchi, Toshiaki Shibutani, Yukio Iwayama, Shogo Takashiba, Hidemi Kurihara, Masami Ninomiya, Jun-ichi Kido, Toshihiko Nagata, Takafumi Hamachi, Katsumasa Maeda, Yoshitaka Hara, Yuichi Izumi, Takao Hirofuji, Enyu Imai, Masatoshi Omae, Mitsuru Watanuki, and Shinya Murakami, were honored for their paper "Periodontal Tissue Regeneration Using Fibroblast Growth Factor -2: Randomized Controlled Phase II Clinical Trial." This article was published in the July 2008 issue of PLoS ONE.

The William J. Gies Award is sponsored by American Dental Education Association and presented annually for contributions to literature in periodontology. The award is provided by the William J. Gies Foundation for the Advancement of Dentistry.

This year's recipient was Dr. Jan T. Lindhe in recognition of his contributions to periodontics that have spanned four decades and have left a lasting mark on the discipline. Dr. Lindhe has published more than 400 original peer-reviewed publications, book chapters and scholarly texts. His textbook on clinical periodontology and implant dentistry, currently in its fifth edition, is a reference manual that is widely used in dental schools worldwide.

Special citation
A special citation, sponsored by Johnson & Johnson Healthcare Products, is presented to Dr. Robert A. Faiella, for his service as chair of the AAP Continuing Education Oversight Committee and multiple years of contributing to programming of current and past highly successful AAP annual meetings.

For more information, go to American Academy of Periodontology.

To read more about the AAP, go to American Academy of Periodontology.

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