Taking
Initiative
Since 2006, Dr. David
Simmons, assistant
professor in the
Department of
Periodontics, has
initiated seven grant
proposals resulting in the
funding of seven
fellowships totaling
$350,000. The fellowships
are used to train
periodontal residents in
the latest techniques of
implant placement and
restoration.
The companies sponsoring
the fellowships are
Straumann USA and Zimmer
Dental, two of the leading
manufacturers of dental
implants. Straumann has
funded three fellowships
and Zimmer Dental has
funded four. Both are
global companies,
headquartered in
Switzerland.
Dr. Simmons is principal
investigator for two
additional implant
research studies funded
with a $65,000 grant from
Zimmer Dental and Astra
Tech. Residents in the
Department of Periodontics
will place the implants in
about 125 patients. He
also was awarded an
$11,000 Dental Education
Support Grant from Zimmer.
"Even in the aftermath of
Hurricane Katrina, David
was focused on funding,"
said Dr. Gerald Evans,
interim chairman of the
department. "In fact, the
first pre-doctoral implant
training to include the
entire dental class was
funded with the grant he
received from Zimmer
Dental in 2006 while the
school was relocated in
Baton Rouge. Grants of
$426,000 in new revenue
show that he's resourceful
and persistent."
Over the last 25 years,
dental implants have
revolutionized the
treatment of missing teeth
and elevated the standard
of patient care. The
technology supporting this
rapid change requires
efficient collaboration
between dental schools and
the dental industry.
Fellowships play a vital
role in the transfer of
knowledge leading to
innovation.
Dr. Simmons, a 1963
graduate of the Loyola
School of Dentistry, has
been a member of the LSUSD
faculty since 1996. The
co-investigators at LSUSD
are Dr. Archontia
Palaiologou, Dr. Pooja
Maney and Susan Billiot,
RDH, in the Department of
Periodontics, and Edwin
Kee, CMDT, in the
Department of
Prosthodontics.
|