SP-22 Understanding and Managing Apical Periodontitis: Where We Are and What the Future Holds
CE Hours: 0.75
Description: Apical periodontitis (AP) manifests with variable clinical and radiographic presentations that may be attributed to differences in microbial and host factors. While the microbial segment of AP has been extensively studied, the host factors involved in AP predisposition have only recently begun to be elucidated. Understanding host and microbial biomarker/molecular signatures in AP is critical for advancing knowledge and for the development of improved preventive and/or precision-based therapies. In this seminar, the clinical presentations of AP as well as host and microbial factors will be reviewed. New perspectives on future diagnostic and treatment approaches for AP will also be discussed.
Learning Objectives:
- Explain how individual host response affects predisposition to pulpal and periapical pathosis
- Explain the results of contemporary microbial analysis of endodontic infections, and how this may guide antimicrobial approaches
- Describe how information gleaned from microbial and genetic analysis can inform future precision based treatment approaches
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Ariadne Letra, D.D.S., M.S., P.h.D.
Dr. Ariadne Letra is a tenured professor of Oral and Craniofacial Sciences and Endodontics, and a member of the Center for Craniofacial and Dental Genetics at the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine.
Dr. Letra’s research focuses on gene discovery and functional genomic characterization approaches to understand the etiology of complex craniofacial and oral traits and conditions such as cleft lip/palate, tooth agenesis, and apical periodontitis. Another aspect of Dr. Letra’s work focuses on identifying host factors contributing to the interconnectedness between oral and systemic health and disease.
Dr. Letra has been the principal investigator for several NIH and AAE foundation grants and has served in various NIH study sections. Her residents have also been recipients of numerous AAE Resident Research grant awards and placed among the top ten winners of the AAE/Dentsply Resident Research Presentation Awards for the last ten years.
Dr. Letra’s work has been recognized through prestigious awards including the 2020 Journal of Endodontics Best Paper in Clinical Research Award. Her work was also featured on the cover of the Journal of Endodontics, Journal of Dental Research, and Orthodontics and Craniofacial Research Journal. Dr. Letra is a recipient of the distinguished 2018 AADR/SCADA Burton C. Borgelt Faculty 160 peer-reviewed articles, 5 book chapters, and numerous abstracts and publications in the media. She is an associate editor of the Journal of Endodontics, and a member of the editorial board of numerous medical and dental journals including the Journal of Dental Research, Journal of Dental Research Clinical and Translational Research, American Journal of Human Genetics, among others.
Dr. Letra is currently Chair of the AAE Research and Scientific Affairs Committee.
Disclosure
I declare that I have no proprietary, financial, or other personal interest of any nature or kind in any product, service, course, and/or company, or in any firm beneficially associated therewith, that will be discussed or considered during the proposed presentation.
Ashraf F. Fouad, D.D.S., M.S.
Dr. Fouad obtained his DDS, Certificate of Endodontics and MS at the University of Iowa.
He served on the faculty and in various administrative roles at University of Connecticut, the University of Maryland, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is currently Professor and Chair, Department of Endodontics, Director, Advanced Endodontics Program, and Interim Director, Health Information and Business Systems (HIBS) at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Dr. Fouad has published over 110 peer-reviewed manuscripts, 25 textbook chapters, and 145 abstracts. He edited and co-authored the textbooks: Endodontic Microbiology (now in its second edition), as well as the fifth and sixth editions of Endodontics: Principles and Practice. He is a Diplomate and Past President of the American Board of Endodontics, and an Associate Editor of the Journal of Endodontics, Dental Traumatology and Frontiers of Dental Medicine – Endodontics. He received the Distinguished Scientist Award from the Pulp Biology and Regeneration Group of the International Association of Dental Research in 2017, and the AAE President’s Award in 2022.
Speaker Disclosure
I declare that I have no proprietary, financial, or other personal interest of any nature or kind in any product, service, course, and/or company, or in any firm beneficially associated therewith, that will be discussed or considered during the proposed presentation
