Results: 201 news stories

A New Year’s resolution that makes you smile and improves your health!

What if you finally found a New Year’s resolution with multiple, long-lasting positive health impacts that you could stick to with one easy-to-make change?

Look no further – we have the perfect resolution to start 2023 off the right way – and to ensure that you have many future new years to celebrate!


Technology innovation in patient care: Mobile check-in stations at UT Dentistry

UT Dentistry has initiated the use of new mobile check-in stations. These stations will help streamline patient check-in and check-out, while improving the patient experience. Currently, eight mobile check-in stations are being used in the Predoctoral clinic. These innovative stations involve the use of a cart with its own power supply allowing them to operate untethered.

Shelbourn receives the 2022 AAPF Mark Setter Leadership in Periodontology and Dental Implantology Award

The recipient of the Dr. Mark K. Setter Leadership in Periodontology and Dental Implantology Award must exemplify leadership in the profession by their actions in promoting periodontology and dental implantology. This is not a clinical award but an award for leadership and promoting all aspects of what it means to be a periodontist.


School of Dentistry’s Department of Periodontics wins big at this year’s AAP meeting

With a mission to improve the periodontal and general health of the public through support of research and education, the American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) Foundation annually recognizes members whose service and dedication have made a meaningful impact on the field.

This year, the School of Dentistry’s periodontics faculty and residents were recognized with numerous awards, including the AAP’s highest honor, the Gold Medal. Each were presented during a special ceremony at the 2022 AAP annual meeting in October.

Congratulations to our School of Dentistry winners!


Mealey takes home the Gold Medal, AAP’s highest award

With a mission to improve the periodontal and general health of the public through support of research and education, the American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) Foundation annually recognizes members whose service and dedication have made a meaningful impact on the field. The AAP Gold Medal Award is given in recognition of outstanding contributions and service to the Academy and understanding of the field of periodontology and the diagnosis and treatment of periodontal diseases.

Generous grant from Delta Dental to support pediatric care in San Antonio and Laredo

For a second year, the School of Dentistry’s Department of Developmental Dentistry is honored to be awarded a grant of $50,000 by Delta Dental’s Community Care Foundation. The grant will be used again this year to support their patient care work at the Ricardo Salinas Pediatric Dental Clinic and UT Health Laredo Dental Clinic. Both not-for-profit clinics provide much-needed pediatric dental care to a primarily Hispanic population of underserved and underinsured children.

School of Dentistry LEADs future dentists in South Texas

The new academic year has kicked off, but several students have been on campus for most of the summer. From clinical outreach to scientific research, doctoral and dental hygiene students kept a full schedule. The Learning Enhancement for Achievement in Dentistry (LEAD) program is unique among the school's summer offerings in that it is open to dental and predental students. Senior dental student, Sofia J.

Back-to-school dental checkups can impact students’ attendance

As back-to-school preparations are wrapping up and children return back to school, an often-neglected item on the checklist is a routine dental appointment. According to research, when schools open in the fall, children will be three times more likely to miss school days due to dental-related problems than any other illness. "Tooth decay is the most common chronic childhood disease in the U.S.," said Maria Jose Cervantes-Mendez, DDS, MS, director of the Advanced Education in Pediatric Dentistry Program at UT Health San Antonio.

Students and faculty ensure Special Smiles for athletes at the 2022 Special Olympics Texas Summer Games

This May, students, faculty and volunteers participated in a two-day Special Olympics Special Smiles event, part of the 2022 Special Olympics Texas Summer Games held in and around Morgan’s Wonderland theme park and the first hosted since the onset of the pandemic. Claudia I.

Dr. Jason Jones receives the Southwest Society of OMS Byrd/Tilson/Walker award

The Southwest Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons is one of six regional oral and maxillofacial (OMS) societies in the United States. At their annual society meeting, the first day is “Resident’s Day” during which residents from the Southwest region’s OMS training programs present abstracts of interesting cases, research projects, and papers. The Byrd/Walker/Tilson resident award, which was started ten years ago, honors the resident giving the best presentation at the meeting. “I believe I won the award this year due to the original research that Dr.

Delta Dental supports care of the underserved

The School of Dentistry’s Department of Developmental Dentistry has been awarded a generous grant of $50,000 by Delta Dental’s Community Care Foundation to support patient care activities of the Ricardo Salinas Pediatric Dental Clinic and UT Health Laredo Dental Clinic. The Ricardo Salinas Pediatric Dental Clinic is a distinctive collaboration between the San Antonio Metropolitan Health District, Children’s Shelter of San Antonio, Texas Cavaliers, and the UT Health San Antonio School of Dentistry’s Advanced Education in Pediatric Dentistry Program.

Give the Gift of Hope to Dental Hygiene Students

At the School of Dentistry, our Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene students are dedicated to becoming extraordinary health care providers for their future patients. Behind the passion to provide the best care and treatment is a personal journey that leads each student to our school. For Kaymen Fryer, Class of 2022, her journey began during a mission trip in Peru while assisting a medical and dental team. “The dental hygienists on the trip inspired me to pursue a career in the dental field.

School of Dentistry offers hand skills course to international dentists

This July the School of Dentistry began offering a new continuing education hand skills course to international dentists seeking future admission to an International Dentist Education Program. The four-day, 32 hour workshop is designed to assist international dentists prepare for the bench assessment required when applying for admission into advanced standing programs. Under the guidance of seasoned dental faculty, the first cohort of fourteen trainees participated in lecture and hands-on sessions to review both fixed and operative psychomotor skills in a state-of-the-art Virtual Reality Si

School of Dentistry earns 34th place in international ranking

UT Health San Antonio continues to improve in the annual Academic Ranking of World Universities, also known as the ShanghaiRanking. In the category of Dentistry & Oral Sciences, based at UT Health San Antonio in the School of Dentistry, the university is ranked 34th worldwide. The university’s ranking is also 16th among U.S. universities and No. 1 among the three Texas schools included in the ranking. Read the full story on Newsroom.

2021 Faculty Research & Master Clinician Awards

Two distinguished faculty members received their award plaques, recognizing them as awardees of the 2021 School of Dentistry Faculty Research and Master Clinician Awards.  The School of Dentistry first announced the award winners in April as the awardees were speakers during the 39th Annual Research and Clinical Symposium. Faculty Research Award Anibal Diogenes, DDS, MS, PhD, was selected for the 2021 Faculty Research Award for his long-running standard of research excellence.

Conversation with the Dean

On April 28, Dean Peter M. Loomer, BSc, DDS, PhD, MRCD(C), FACD, hosted a virtual Conversation with the Dean event from his home in San Antonio. Accompanying him were Amanda Wilson, a rising third-year dental student, and Amanda Liccione, director of development for the School of Dentistry.

Class of 2021 dental students, hygienists achieve 100% licensing pass rate

The School of Dentistry celebrated its Class of 2021 as 100% of all dental and dental hygiene seniors passed the Western Regional Examining Board (WREB) this April. Traditionally, the WREB, a high-stakes licensure exam, requires the students to demonstrate clinical competency with live patients. However, at the onset of the 2020 coronavirus pandemic, Texas dental schools advocated for simulated exams.

2021 Senior Awards

The School of Dentistry hosted the 2021 Senior Hooding and Awards Convocation Ceremony on May 20.

Dental Student featured in “Real Jobs” video series

Joi Walls, a rising fourth-year dental student, was recently featured by InTheKnow.com for the series titled “Real Jobs” that profiles young adults aspiring to enter various careers. The five-minute video follows Joi through her day caring for patients and creating content for her YouTube channel. Joi speaks about her inspiration for entering the profession of dentistry and her motivation for sharing her journey that she hopes will “usher in the next generation of young, Black dentists,” writes Katie Mather from InTheKnow. Watch Joi’s “Real Story” at InTheKnow.com.

Senior dental student learned more than dentistry on pediatric rotation

Larissa Sanchez is a senior dental student with her sights set on graduation this May. Over the past four years, she and her classmates have been exposed to a number of community-based training experiences meant to enhance their skills for providing dental care and managing a diverse patient population. One such rotation is conducted at Ricardo Salinas Clinic, an affiliated training site, that provides students with valuable clinical training working with children.