AQUEOUS SOLUTIONSBanishing Bacteriaby Purging the Pipes

ADDRESSING THE AFTERMATHDentistry Centralto Disaster Response

Volume 2/1, Winter 2001

Monitoring the Mouth toDiagnose Disease

THE TALESTEETH TELL

A Publication of The University of Alabama School of Dentistry

WELCOME TO THE SECOND ISSUE of Contact maga-zine. In our inaugural issue, we described the progress we havemade in renovating our building—including improved waitingareas, streamlined business offices, updated dental clinics with redesigned chairs,and new, high-tech classrooms. But as you all know, it’s not just bricks and mortarthat make a great academic institution. More important are the people—the faculty, staff, and students who work within these hallowed halls.

In this issue of Contact you will learn more about the cutting-edge researchbeing conducted at our school, including efforts to explore the relationshipbetween dental diseases and systemic conditions such as diabetes, pregnancy,heart disease, osteoporosis, and arthritis. You will also read about our interna-tional interests and ties, our exceptional students, and our dedicated faculty.

If you look closely, you will discover common threads running through allof these stories. Together these threads form the fabric of the University ofAlabama School of Dentistry. These threads join generation to generation,with each building upon that which the previous generation left for them, andthey also represent the work of your colleagues—past as well as present.

The passing of our teachers and leaders always makes us recall the manygifts they have bequeathed to us. Dr. Victor J. Matukas came to UAB in 1975,and, after rising through the ranks, he was asked to serve as dean in 1990.During his tenure at UAB he touched the lives of many of our students, faculty,and staff. His passing last October saddens us all. Dr. Matukas left a legacy, fol-lowing in the tradition of excellence set by those who came before him. Theirwork was not just a job, it was a passion—it was the very essence of their lives.

Our graduates and friends have an opportunity to contribute to this lega-cy. The University of Alabama School of Dentistry offers many ways of pay-ing tribute in a lasting and meaningful manner to what the school has meant inyour personal and professional lives.

As we begin the new year, I wish you and your family peace, joy, and goodhealth. During 2001, I hope you will take the time to visit us and see firsthandthe progress we are making on behalf of our profession—and, indeed, onbehalf of all the citizens of Alabama.

Sincerely,

Mary Lynne Capilouto, D.M.D.Dean, University of AlabamaSchool of Dentistry

A Message from the DeanContact is published by the Universityof Alabama School of Dentistry at UAB

in collaboration with the Office ofPublic Relations and Marketing.

EXECUTIVE EDITORPam Powell

MANAGING EDITORRuss Willcutt

EXECUTIVE ART DIRECTORRon Gamble

ART DIRECTORAmy R. Bickell

PRODUCTION MANAGERLynn Lowrie

PHOTOGRAPHYSteve Wood,

UAB Photography & Graphics

WRITERSSandra Bearden, Norma Butterworth-

McKittrick, Rhonda Sessions Gregg, RebeccaMcCracken, Ella Robinson, Russ Willcutt, Cheryl

Sloan Wray

EDITORIAL BOARDMary Lynne Capilouto, D.M.D.Dean, University of Alabama

School of Dentistry

Andrea MartinDirector of Development

Steven Filler, D.D.S.Assistant Dean for Student, Alumni,

and External Affairs

Michael Reddy, D.M.D.Assistant Dean for Planning

and Clinical Activity

Continuing Education

Dentistry Catalogs

Departments

Degree Programs

Alumni Association

Academic Calendar

Research

Please visit us at[www.dental.uab.edu] for an

online version of Contactas well as information on:

8

4

2News about the accomplishments, awards, honors,grants, and research findings of the students and facultyof The University of Alabama School of Dentistry.

9

The Tales Teeth Tell—Researchers in the School ofDentistry are discovering connections between oral healthand systemic disorders including diabetes and cardiac disease.

International Interests—Longstanding student exchangeprograms between the dental school and universities aroundthe globe benefit everyone involved.

Comparing the Curriculum—Differences in dentaleducation in the United States and Japan are a fascinatingstudy, according to biomaterials expert Shiro Suzuki.

1010

Resinous Restorations—New indirect composite resin tested at the School of Dentistry provides excellentwear resistance and esthetic properties.

Exceptional Opportunities—Two UAB dental students make the most of a rare opportunity to study at theNational Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research.

14

11Aqueous Solutions—Special chair design in the dentalschool’s clinics allows for periodic purging of water lines, less-ening the chance of exposing patients to bacteria.

Feature stories on some of the school’s outstanding faculty. In this issue, meet Patrick Louis, Raquel Mazer, andThomas Weatherford.

F a c u l t y F o c u s

16Profiles of selected students—in this issue, Priscila Denny,Chrisy Congo, Sunil Philip, and Matt Brewer.

S t u d e n t S p o t l i g h t

18Following in the Footsteps—Why is it that so manysons and daughters of dental alums decide to enter their parent’sprofession? Meet two families who share their reasons for mak-ing the School of Dentistry a part of their family tradition.

A l u m n i P r o f i l e

Volume 2/1, Winter 2001

P r o f e s s i o n a l P u l s e

C o v e r S t o r y

F e a t u r e s

F e a t u r e s

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Addressing the Aftermath—Dentists often play animportant role in dealing with the details after natural andman-made disasters.

Athletic Assistance—Students and faculty in the Schoolof Dentistry volunteer their efforts to assist the exceptional athletes of the Special Olympics.

4 8 10 12

2 Contact

Shiro Suzuki, D.D.S., professor of biomaterials, has been awarded a grant supportingclinical evaluation of a device he helped design that helps dysphagic patients to swal-low. The grant was made by the Toluyama Corporation and will help Suzuki and hiscolleagues at Showa University in Japan evaluate the effectiveness of the “Swalloaid”device on elderly edentulous individuals.

“I am expecting a visiting professor from Showa University who is an expert inthis area to arrive at UAB this spring,” says Suzuki. “Our collaboration should lead tosome very meaningful results.”

Suzuki says it is important to shine a light on the work being done in the field ofdentistry to help those who are physically disabled. He will introduce the concept forthis new appliance at the International Association for Disabled and Oral Health inMadrid, Spain.

Steven J. Filler, D.D.S., professor and assis-tant dean for student, alumni, and externalaffairs, has been chosen by the AmericanDental Education Association (ADEA) asone of 19 to participate in a year-long fel-lowship known as the ADEA LeadershipInstitute. Filler’s term began last July.

“These individuals are among the nation’sfinest dental school educators,” accord-ing to Richard W.Valachovic, D.M.D.,ADEA executive director.“They are thetrailblazers who will lead our institutionsin the future.”

The institute is a three-phased program,beginning with a five-day session focusingon personal assessment, team perfor-mance, and active learning involvement.Phase II is a nine-month, intensive experi-ence at the fellow’s home institution,during which he completes a project thatfocuses on issues critical to dentalschool and higher education administra-tion.The third phase is a one-day leader-ship forum held in conjunction with theADEA Annual Session and Exposition inChicago next March.

The 1917 Dental Clinic has received anaward of $24,057 from the Ryan WhiteCARE Act Dental ReimbursementProgram. This federally funded programprovides reimbursement to dentalschools and specialized clinics to helpcompensate the cost of providing dentalcare for patients with HIV/AIDS.

“The 1917 Dental Clinic strives tobe self supporting,” says Jeff Hill,D.M.D., dental director of the clinic.“Although we’re not a ‘free’ clinic, we doprovide services for a number of patients

who would otherwise not receive dentalcare at all. Without funding from sourcessuch as the Ryan White CARE Act—aswell as other generous charitable organi-zations—the clinic would be unable toprovide these much-needed services andmay very well have to close its doorsaltogether.”

The retrospective grant was fundedat approximately 65 percent of the totaluncompensated costs incurred by theclinic for the services provided betweenJuly 1998 and June 1999.

1917 Clinic Receives Federal Support

Dean Mary LynneCapilouto, D.M.D.,recently presented honorary awards toalumni of the School of Dentistry.TheDistinguished AlumnusAward was bestowedupon Mario GuillermoMartinez, Jr., D.M.D., andthe Outstanding Young

Alumnus Award was given to Leigh-Anne Tucker Nevins, D.M.D.

In remarks made during the awards ceremony, Capiloutodescribed Martinez as man with a remarkable background.“Although he loves his profession, he loved freedom more—somuch that he fled his homeland once it had fallen toCommunist oppression,” she said.“He left behind an establisheddental practice and career for uncertainty in a new land. But

this was a price he was willing to pay, for he longed to be whathe had dreamed of all his life—a caregiver and a healer.”

Of Nevins, Capilouto said that “young graduates can follow thepaths of those who came before them or blaze new ones.Thisyear’s recipient of the Outstanding Young Alumnus Award doesboth. She represents what a young practitioner should aspire toby giving to her patients and giving back to her community andher profession.”

The Distinguished Alumnus Award is given to individuals age 40and above, while the Outstanding Young Alumnus Award is madeto those below the age of 40. Criteria for both awards includebeing a continuous learner, having made significant contributionsin terms of care and volunteerism to the school, and beingactive in professional organizations.The first awards were pre-sented in 1999 to G. Lewis Mitchell, Jr., D.M.D., and to Kevin M.Sims, D.M.D.

Professional PulseSuzuki Helps Design Appliance for Dysphagia

DENTAL ALUMNI HONORED FOR ACHIEVEMENTS

FILLER NAMED TO ADEA’SLEADERSHIP INSTITUTE

Contact 3

VICTOR MATUKAS, former dean ofthe University of Alabama School ofDentistry, passed away on October 5,2000. He was appointed dean in 1990,a position he held until his retirementin 1997.

“Victor Matukas was one of themost intelligent individuals I have hadthe pleasure of working with,” accord-ing to his friend and colleague Peter D.Waite, D.D.S., M.D., professor andchair of the Department of Oral andMaxillofacial Surgery. “He had a pho-tographic memory and a clear perspec-tive on complex issues. As a teacher, hemade difficult problems seem simple.Vic was objective, sincere, honest, fair,and he always spoke his mind. As domany others, I owe him a great deal.”

A native of Freeport, Texas, Matukasreceived his D.D.S. degree from LoyolaUniversity. He earned his Ph.D. degreefrom the University of Rochester, andhis M.D. degree cum laude from theUniversity of Colorado. He performedpostdoctoral studies at CharityHospital in New Orleans and theNational Institute of Dental Researchbefore continuing his studies and com-pleting an internship at UAB Hospital.

Matukas was appointed assistantdean for hospital affairs at UAB in 1975,during which time he was also an asso-ciate professor in the Department ofSurgery. He was also a senior scientistin the Comprehensive Cancer Center

In Memoriam

Victor J. Matukas, D.D.S., M.D., Ph.D.

1933-2000

Our Lady of the Lake Building Fund or Social Concerns CommitteePO Box 388Pell City,Alabama 35215

The American Cancer SocietyPO Box 685Pell City,Alabama 35125

and a professor in the School ofDentistry’s Department of Oral andMaxillofacial Surgery. In 1985 he wasnamed the first occupant of the CharlesA. McCallum Chair of Oral andMaxillofacial Surgery. He soon becamechair of that department before risingto the position of dean of the School ofDentistry.

A diplomat of the American Boardof Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery,Matukas held positions in professionalorganizations such as the AmericanDental Association, the AmericanAssociation of Dental Schools, and theInternational Association of DentalResearch. He was also a member of theSouthern Medical Association, theAmerican Trauma Society, and theInternational Association of Oral andMaxillofacial Surgeons, among manyothers. He received the Most ExcellentFellow Award from the Alabama DentalAssociation in 1996.

Matukas was involved in a widevariety of research, including the use ofthe ceramic material durapatite in den-tal augmentation, root implants, andorthagnic surgery. He collaborated ondozens of articles published in suchnotable periodicals as the Journal of CellBiology, the Journal of Oral and Maxillo-facial Surgery, and the Alabama Journal ofMedical Sciences. He also contributedchapters for many dental and surgicaltextbooks.

“Vic continued the tradition ofexcellence established at UAB and evenraised the bar a notch or two,” says Waite.“Like many other residents and students,I am saddened by his death. But I willalways remember him for the influencehe has had on my life and my career.”

THE MATUKAS FAMILY ASKS THAT DONATIONS BE MADE

TO THE FOLLOWING ORGANIZATIONS:

WWHEN DENTISTS EXAMINE theirpatients, they have the opportunityto detect more than tooth decay orgum disease. Researchers in theSchool of Dentistry at UAB are dis-covering a host of connectionsbetween oral health and systemic dis-ease, according to Marjorie Jeffcoat,D.M.D., professor and chair of theDepartment of Periodontics.

“It’s important to remain aware of possiblesystemic linkages whenever you have a patientin the chair,” she says. “We’re finding that manyconditions and diseases of the body leave cluesin the mouth for dentists to discover. This canlead to early diagnosis, sometimes far in advanceof a patient reporting symptoms to their pri-mary-care physician.”

Surgeon General SupportsAccording to the familiar children’s song, “thejaw bone’s connected to the neck bone,” andthere’s truth in those simple lyrics. In many ways,the jaw, mouth, teeth, and surrounding tissue areintrinsically connected to the rest of the body.

“Every dentist knows that certain medical orsystemic diseases can modify oral diseases. Weknow that diabetics who don’t maintain theirdisease well tend to lose bone around their teethmore quickly than other patients, for instance,”says Jeffcoat. “On the other side of the coin, thereare dental diseases that affect the whole body.That’s why we feel that dental examinationsshould be included in general-health checkups.”

This link is underscored by the first-everU.S. Surgeon General’s Report on Oral Health,which was released last May. Major findings inthe report include the fact that “the mouthreflects general health and well-being,” and that“oral diseases and conditions are associated withother health problems.”

Jeffcoat was among the dental professionalswho were called upon to help draft the document.

Written concisely and in layman’s terms, the reportcalls for further research and investigation of suchlinkages. “Dr. David Satcher, the surgeon general,had us condense and refine a thick sheaf of doc-umentation into just a few pages,” Jeffcoat says.“He wanted to be sure it was widely circulated andwritten in a way that would lead people to read it.”

A century ago, Jeffcoat points out, theanswer to “bad teeth” was to remove them. Theexpectation was that “toothlessness” would solverelated health problems. Today’s answer isresearch that identifies and explains the relation-ships between a healthy mouth and teeth andthe human body. The dental school is pursuingthis kind of research through its clinics, in stud-ies, and at the Special Caries Research Center(please see sidebar accompanying this feature).

Monitoring

the Mouth

to Diagnose

Disease

BY SANDRA BEARDEN

4 Contact

The Tales

Teeth Tell

ORAL CONDITIONS HAVE

BEEN SHOWN TO HAVE

A DIRECT CONNECTION

TO SYSTEMIC HEALTH, INCLUDING THOSE LEADING

TO PRE-TERM BIRTH AND LOW

BIRTH-WEIGHT INFANTS.

low birth-weight babies as mothers with healthygums,” Jeffcoat says. “We’re also doing a study ofabout 350 pregnant patients with periodontal dis-ease to determine the best treatments for women.”

Jeffcoat says the next step in the study willinvolve intervention and treatment. Means ofintervention being tested include routine clean-ing and polishing, and scaling and root plan-ing—both with and without administering anantibiotic. “Our goal, of course, is to find treat-ments that are not harmful to babies,” she adds.

Ananda Dasanayake, B.D.S., M.P.H., Ph.D.,an associate professor in the Department of OralBiology, has also studied periodontal disease as arisk factor for low birth weight. A native of SriLanka, Dasanayake first noted the correlationwhen he was studying maternal and child healthin Thailand. Former dentistry Deans JosephVolker, D.D.S., and Charles McCallum, D.M.D.,later recruited him to UAB, where he continuedhis research.

“Low birth weight is a significant healthproblem,” says Dasanayake. “Such babies areabout 20 times more likely than full-weightbabies to die before their first birthdays. Thosewho survive the first year may have respiratory,neurological, or behavioral problems.

“In a joint enterprise with Meharry MedicalCollege in Nashville and the University of NorthCarolina at Chapel Hill, we studied 421 preg-nant women, most of them African Americans,” hecontinues. “We concluded that mothers with highlevels of periodontal pathogens were more likelyto have low birth-weight infants. It’s obvious thatdisparities in dental care lead to other problems,and we need to find some way to close this gap.”

Inflammation and InfantsIn cooperation with the Department ofObstetrics and Gynecology, Jeffcoat is leading astudy of risk factors for pre-term birth.Researchers have reviewed the medical recordsof 1,300 pregnant women, taking into accountsuch factors as whether or not they smoke andwhether or not they are underweight, as well asother habits and body characteristics.

In the dental aspect of the study, the keydifference between test groups involves guminflammation stemming from periodontal dis-ease. Such inflammation produces the samechemicals that, at high-enough levels, can set offearly labor and delivery in pregnant women.

“We determined that mothers with periodontaldisease have five times as much risk for delivering

INFECTIONS IN

THE MOUTH CAN

IMPACT DISEASES

SUCH AS DIABETES,IMPEDING THE

BODY’S ABILITY TO

MAINTAIN BLOOD

GLUCOSE LEVELS.

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Caries and CardiologyA connection is also emerging between chronicoral infection and another killer—heart disease.“The data are still somewhat controversial, as aremost findings when they first come out,” saysJeffcoat. “But a number of people are looking atworldwide trends and seeing that patients withoral infections are at greater risk for cardiovas-cular disease than those without oral infections.”

In a UAB study called “HER BITE,” fundedby the Wyeth-Ayerst pharmaceuticals company,researchers are studying 130 patients who havehad cardiovascular disease to see how muchperiodontal disease they have.

“We do clinical exams, measure periodontalpockets, and then take radiographs to determinethe degree of periodontal disease,” says NicolaasGeurs, D.M.D., an assistant professor of peri-odontology. “Early analyses indicate thatpatients with a history of cardiovascular diseaseare nearly twice as likely to have periodontaldisease as those with no such history.

“One explanation, though still not proven,concerns the presence of plaque,” says Geurs.“Bacteria in the dental plaque around teeth alsocan be found in atherosclerotic plaques. Thatbacteria can trigger little blood clots to form inthe blood vessels and get trapped in the areasnarrowed by plaque, triggering a heart attack.”

“Simply put, the significance of this study forcardiology is that if you treat oral infections inwomen, there’s a possibility of preventing themfrom having heart attacks,” says Michael Reddy,D.M.D., professor and postgraduate director ofperiodontology. “It’s all about how everything issystemically related. If you have an infection any-where, even around your teeth, that could lead toadverse outcomes—maybe involving your heart.”

Sharing Tests and TreatmentsIn addition to these recent findings, Jeffcoat saysthat links have long been established betweenoral health and another major disease—diabetes.It’s known that people with diabetes have ahigher-than-normal risk of periodontal disease,she says, and physicians and dentists cautiondiabetics to control their blood-sugar levels inorder to avoid gum disease.

Geurs is trying new approaches. “Studieshave shown that certain types of rats that aregenetically predisposed to have diabetes alsohave a lot of periodontal disease,” he says. “Wealready know that diabetes makes periodontaldisease worse, but new data indicates that it’salso harder to control blood glucose with insulinif you have infections. Periodontal disease couldbe one of those infections.”

Along with other departments at UAB, den-tal researchers have also conducted studies thatconnect oral health to osteoporosis and arthritis.Through the ongoing Women’s Health Initiative,scientists are measuring bone-density readings inthe jaws and hips of women involved in the study.A correlation between bone loss in the two areasindicates that similar treatments may be devel-oped to address both types of bone problems.

Another study, conducted several years ago,involves using digital subtraction radiography tomeasure bone and cartilage changes in the handsof patients with both periodontitis and rheumatoidarthritis. Jeffcoat and Larry Moreland, M.D.,professor of immunology and rheumatology inthe School of Medicine, found that similarmethods can be used to monitor both diseases.

A History for HealingWith so much proof of the direct connectionbetween oral and systemic health, how shoulddentists incorporate this knowledge into theirday-to-day practices? Jeffcoat prescribes a three-pronged approach involving screening and diag-nosis, prevention, and early treatment of peri-odontal disease. “It’s more vital than ever thatdentists take medical histories and do systemicchecks for signs of disease,” she says. “Thisincludes making sure there are no swellings,abscesses, or swollen lymph nodes. We also rec-ommend using the Periodontal Screening andRecording Examination, which only takes a fewminutes to complete.

“It’s also important to take a dental historythe same way a physician takes a medical histo-

RESEARCH HAS

INDICATED A LINK

BETWEEN ORAL

INFECTION AND

HEART DISEASE,AND BONE LOSS IN

THE MOUTH ALSO

COINCIDES WITH

OSTEOPOROSIS IN

MEN AND IN

WOMEN.

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ry,” she says. “Listening to a patient’s chief com-plaint and asking questions about signs, symp-toms, and lifestyle habits are essential to thegathering of a complete medical history. As weteach our students, a thoroughly documentedmedical history is a prerequisite to providingappropriate care.”

Jeffcoat says dentists also need to know theirpatient’s medical histories in order to preventproblems. “Patients with certain heart problemsneed to be premedicated with antibiotics beforeso much as a cleaning, for instance,” she says.“We need to explain to new patients that our aimis to protect their health, not to pry into theirlives,” says Jeffcoat.

Decisions regarding treatment are to bemade between dentists and patients, she says,but a dentist spotting other potential medicalproblems may wish to contact a physiciandirectly—with the permission of the patient. “IfI were administering an antibiotic, pain medica-tion, or other drugs that might cause an adversereaction, consulting directly with the patient’sphysician is advisable,” she says.

Jeffcoat warns against dentists or patientstaking what she calls a “magazine approach” todiagnosis. “That’s applying a general concept toa situation, such as saying that everyone withperiodontal disease is over the age of 40 with redgums,” she says. “You don’t want to make a judg-ment based on a generality. Every patientdeserves individual consideration.”

A Healthy Self-ImageAs important as physical health certainly is,mental well-being is equally valuable. Yet anoth-er study in which Jeffcoat is involved has estab-lished a link between feeling good about yourteeth and psychological well-being.

“The patients involved in this study have noteeth at all and are wearing dentures,” she says.“Lower more than upper dentures tend to moveall around and create problems for the wearersover time. So we’re replacing lower dentureswith implants. All of the patients report atremendously improved sense of well-being andself-esteem with the implants than they’d hadwith the dentures alone.

“That’s one of the things that’s most appealingabout dentistry,” says Jeffcoat. “Not only can youcontribute to people’s general health, but youcan also help them smile again and feel goodabout themselves in the process.”

THE SPECIALIZED CARIES RESEARCH CENTER

While one focus of dental research is revealing how oral and systemicdiseases are linked within individuals—what could be referred to as ahorizontal connection—scientists in the Specialized Caries Research Center(SCRC) are exploring the transmission of decay-causing bacteria.There isevidence that such bacteria transmit vertically—from mother to child.

“Through molecular genetics, we use DNA fingerprinting to demonstratehow strains are transmitted,” says Page Caufield, D.D.S., Ph.D., the cen-ter’s director.“We also use genetic techniques to study ‘fidelity,’ whichrelates to how and what mothers transmit to their babies.”

Tied in with transmission is the notion of ‘clonality’—that some strains ofcaries-causing streptococci are more virulent than others.“The implicationis that bacteria transmitted through clonality affect whether or not yourteeth are susceptible to tooth decay,” says Caufield.“If we can identifysuch factors in mothers, we may be able to predict which children are atincreased risk.Then we can take preventive measures.”

UAB’s caries research center is one of two such centers funded in 1994by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).The other is located at HarvardUniversity.Although the NIH has discontinued its funding after this year,the center’s work will continue through several smaller grants, Caufield says.

“Tooth decay is the number-one infectious disease in the world, in termsof prevalence and cost,” he says.“In the United States, 70 percent of oralhealth problems stem from tooth decay, compared to 10 percent that area result of periodontal disease.” The U.S. Surgeon General’s Report onOral Health, released this past May, estimates that the nation’s dental billwill exceed $60 billion this year.

While tooth decay is obviously a big expense to Americans, it’s evenmore costly in other parts of the world.“The People’s Republic of Chinahas 1.2 billion people and only 20,000 dentists,” says Caufield.“As theChinese acquire more Western dietary habits, tooth decay is going to goright off the charts. In this case, prevention is the only route to gobecause the cost of treatment would be prohibitive.”

The SCRC collaborates not only with China, but also with Sweden, Brazil,Taiwan,Thailand, Guatemala, and other countries on research to reducedental caries. Joseph F.Volker, D.D.S., founding dean of the School ofDentistry, helped pioneer dental research at UAB, and his successor,Charles McCallum, D.M.D., fostered many international links in dentalresearch. Caufield credits both with helping create the collaborativearrangements that help make UAB’s dental research team so effective.

“The cooperation we enjoy with other professionals here at UAB isincredible,” he says.“The center’s co-director, Dr. Sten Vermund, is an epi-demiologist who works in the area of geographic medicine and infectiousdisease.The center includes dentists, epidemiologists, and molecular biol-ogists.The atmosphere of collaboration we have at UAB is more intensethan what’s found at other schools such as Harvard and Case Western,and I give Dr. Joe Volker much of the credit for that. He was a dentistwho didn’t want UAB to have two groups of scientists—one for medicineand another for dentistry—but a community that works together.”

CONTACT WITH other cul-tures can change the way a personsees the world. Not only can it lead toan expanded sense of perspective, butalso to greater tolerance for people’s differences.That’s what dental faculty and students at UABgain by participating in the school’s long-stand-ing foreign exchange program.

Rate of ExchangeBeginning with an alliance with the Universityof Iceland’s Department of Odontology that wasestablished by founding Dean Joseph Volker,D.D.S, the School of Dentistry has established atradition of creating relationships with otherdental teaching institutions around the globe.Charles McCallum, D.M.D., Dean Emeritus ofthe dental school and former UAB president,supported and expanded on those relationships,which now include exchange programs withcountries such as Thailand, Germany, Italy,Saudi Arabia, France, Guatemala, Taiwan,Russia, Korea, Brazil, China, and Japan.

“We’ve had a tremendous number of peoplevisit us from universities located in these coun-tries, and that has created a wonderful personaland cultural exchange for everyone involved,”says McCallum, who was recently named mayorof Vestavia Hills, Alabama, in a landslide elec-tion. “Dr. Volker initiated the idea of interna-tional programs to broaden the horizons and vis-tas of the students who were here at the time.”

It’s hard to overestimate the value of culturalexchange, says McCallum. “As you get a people-to-people exchange with other nationalities, youcome to understand some of their problems andissues, while they have the same opportunity togain more respect for you,” he says. “I think someof the world’s problems could be better solvedthrough university exchanges than through gov-ernments. If you give people from other countriesthe chance to visit and train and be educatedhere in the United States, then they gain anappreciation for this country they will carryhome with them on their return.”

8 Contact

Exchange

Programs

Initiate Ideas

BY REBECCA

MCCRACKEN

International

CHARLES MCCALLUM, RIGHT,IS A LONGTIME ADVOCATE OF

INTERNATIONAL STUDENT

EXCHANGE PROGRAMS.

Interests

Reciprocal RelationshipSteven Filler, D.D.S., who serves as assistant deanfor student, alumni, and external affairs, organizedthe most recent student/faculty exchange betweenUAB and Japan. Ten students and two facultymembers from Japan’s Asahi and Meikai univer-sities visited the dental school in August. Theywere assigned “hosts” who acted as guides andeven interpreters during their week-long stay.

“The primary focus was on dentistry,” Fillersays, “to show them the programs we have in placeand what kind of teaching goes on here. We alsowanted them to see our patients, the types ofmaterials we use, the kind of research we do, andhow the students interact with the faculty.”

Filler says what the Japanese students findmost striking is the American students’ involve-ment in treating patients. The Japanese studentstrain for clinical treatment by observing facultyand working on models. “This is obviously a for-eign concept to us since we want our students tobe proficient at seeing patients long before theygraduate,” Filler says.

Shared ConcernsFrom their experience in Japan, Filler says theUAB students took away a broader understand-ing of their profession. “We give them a fantas-tic education here at UAB,” he says. “But part ofbeing a professional is to have a broader view ofthe world. Through interactions with other cul-tures, we’ve all learned that, whether you’re inBirmingham or Japan, people are basically thesame.”

Filler says the dental school gains a greatdeal from the relationship. “The way youbecome second-rate is to remain within yourown environment and just rehash the same oldthings,” he says. “But reaching out and continu-ing to learn keeps you on the cutting edge.”

AS A NATIVE OF JAPAN who has spent themajority of his professional life in the UnitedStates, Shiro Suzuki, D.D.S., Ph.D., is quite famil-iar with the two countries’ systems of dental edu-cation and patient care. A professor of biomate-rials, Suzuki also has played a significant role infostering ties between a number of Japanese uni-versities and the School of Dentistry at UAB.

“One of the things that’s always interested meis the different approaches dental programs takein terms of clinical treatment, patient care, and thegeneral philosophy of the profession,” he says.

Culture and CurriculumSince joining UAB more than a decade ago,Suzuki has served as a visiting professor andguest lecturer at Nihon and Fujita Health uni-versities, both in Japan, where he presents on avariety of topics, including biomaterialsresearch. One of his most popular lectures, how-ever, is one comparing the American andJapanese dental systems.

Suzuki says the major difference is a resultof the insurance program that affects all Japanesepractitioners. “Japanese dentistry is based on anational insurance system,” he says. “A dentalschool’s faculty will always try to teach a varietyof techniques, but instructors, students, and prac-ticing dentists must adhere to the national healthinsurance policies.” For that reason, the treat-ment plan a clinician may consider best isn’t nec-essarily the one that’s approved by the system.

Another difference between the two pro-grams is that Japanese students get very littlehands-on clinical experience. “The Japanesebelieve that students must practice on modelsfor a very long time before they will be preparedto treat a patient, so they don’t receive a lot ofclinical experience while they’re training,” saysSuzuki. “But it’s the exact opposite in the UnitedStates. With the thousands of patients we see

here in the dental school’s clinics, we’re able togive our students a tremendous amount of directexperience before they graduate.”

Experience Is a MustThis limited clinical experience has become aproblem in recent years, according to Suzuki. Inthe past, after students had graduated from den-tal school, they were licensed to practice theprofession but had no idea how to provide actu-al patient care. To address this issue, Japaneseinstitutions now mandate that dental graduatesmust complete a year of clinical experiencebefore they can begin practicing on their own.

Suzuki is also concerned about the wayJapanese dental faculty conduct their research.“The only opportunity that most of them haveto pursue their research is after five o’clock, oncetheir teaching responsibilities are done,” Suzukisays. The second major obstacle is the languagebarrier. “That’s why I encourage Japanese adminis-trators to give their faculty more time for researchand to help them develop the skills they need tospread the word of their discoveries.”

Shared Satisfaction Despite these different approaches in training,practice, and research, Suzuki says the ultimategoals of any dental practitioner are the same.“No matter where I go, whether it’s in Germany,Japan, or somewhere in the United States, I findthat we’re trying to accomplish the same thing—patient satisfaction through quality care,” he says.“And if the patient is happy, then the dentist ishappy.”

Contact 9

Dental Differences

in the U.S. and Japan

BY REBECCA

MCCRACKEN

Comparing the

Curriculum

STEVEN FILLER, LEFT,AND SHIRO SUZUKI

SUPPORT ACTIVE

RELATIONSHIPS

BETWEEN UAB AND

UNIVERSITIES IN

COUNTRIES SUCH

AS JAPAN.

IN THE FIELD OF INDIRECT compos-ite resins, belleGlass HP is the mostexciting new product currently available,according to Jean O’Neal, D.M.D., chairof the Department of Prosthodontics andBiomaterials in the School of Dentistry at UAB.

“This is a material that can be used asa white filling and also has excellent wearcharacteristics and esthetic properties,”says O’Neal. “It can also be used in cer-tain places instead of a crown.”

UAB was instrumental in testing thisheat- and pressure-cured composite,which was developed by Kerr, a sub-sidiary of Sybron Dental Specialties.O’Neal and a team of researchers includ-ing Karl Lienfelder, D.M.D., and CharlesCox, D.M.D., developed a clinical trialto evaluate the material. The trial, whichinvolved testing the material in vivo overthe course of five years, was the longest-running evaluation in the history of com-posite resins.

The innovative material has severaladvantages for both the patient and thedentist, O’Neal says. “It’s not as abrasiveas porcelain to opposing dentition, and italso has the advantage of being fabricatedoutside the mouth, which decreases thechair time and problems associated withshrinkage from polymerization,” she says.

O’Neal’s UAB roots run deep. Sheearned her D.M.D. degree from theSchool of Dentistry and completed a res-idency in prosthodontics in 1980 beforejoining the school’s faculty. In addition toserving as professor and departmentchair, she lectures extensively on esthet-ics and ceramic restorations—her prima-ry research interest.

Beyond the excitement of helpingbring valuable new materials to market,O’Neal says she appreciates the differ-ence they make in people’s lives. “Asmuch as I enjoy teaching enthusiasticyoung people in an academic environ-ment, I’m especially excited by theopportunity to try new things,” she says.

“You can’t imagine the effect that havinga new smile can have on people, and it’sa pleasure to see the excitement studentsfeel when they know they’ve been a partof that process. I am very fortunate tohave found a profession I love so muchand to have the opportunity to share myexpertise with my students.”

O’Neal says she has seen an explo-sion of new techniques and materials inrecent years. Remarkable advances havebeen made in bonding biomaterials toteeth, and exciting new restorative pro-cedures also have also been developed.

Through her relationship with Kerrand other industries that support bioma-terials research, O’Neal is able not onlyto be involved in developing excitingnew materials, but also to share the latestadvancements with her students andpatients. “These new techniques andmaterials allow us to offer patients treat-

10 Contact

Resinous RestorationsNew Materials Mean Better Esthetics

FOR SEASONED DENTAL profession-als, any affiliation with the world-renowned National Institutes of Health(NIH) is a heady experience. For stu-dents, it’s almost unimaginable—espe-cially as part of a research programinvolving only 10 students from acrossthe country. But that’s exactly what hap-pened to two students from the School ofDentistry this past summer when theywere invited to NIH headquarters as partof a special research program.

David Roden and Nathan Redmond,both juniors at the time, participated inthe program through the NIH’s National

Institute of Dental and CraniofacialResearch (NIDCR). Working with dentalresearchers and scientists, they got thechance to view the laboratory side ofdentistry and to participate in valuableresearch projects.

Firoz Rahemtulla, Ph.D., a professorof biomaterials who works closely withthe school’s student research program,says that the students’ selection says a lotabout them as well as the school. “Severalyears ago, the NIDCR initiated thisintramural program to allow dental stu-dents to gain firsthand research experi-ence working with some of the top sci-

ExceptionalOpportunitiesStudents Play Role in NIH Research

NEW COMPOSITE RESINS TESTED

AT UAB ARE WEAR RESISTANT AND

ESTHETICALLY PLEASING.

ments we could not even have imaginedjust 10 years ago,” says O’Neal. “This is areally good time to be practicing den-tistry.” By Ella Robinson

Contact 11

entists in the field,” he says. “Only 10 stu-dents are chosen each summer, and thecompetition to get in is pretty heavy.Both David and Nathan were at the topof the selection list, which adds to thehonor of being chosen in the first place.”

Roden, who was involved in genetherapy research, says that he found theexperience to be invaluable. Soon afterarriving in Washington, D.C., last June,he began working with a scientist toidentify the gene that causes cranial defi-ciencies. At the program’s completion, hepresented his findings to the AmericanAssociation of Dental Research and willsoon publish them in a research paper.

Lab work was just one of the benefitsof attending the program, according toRoden. It was also a great opportunity tomake contacts, meet new friends, and tolearn more about the exciting work beingdone at the NIH. “It’s a wonderful pro-gram in that it’s not just about doing lab

research every day,” he says. “We spenttime in the library, took a private tour ofthe National Academy of Science, andhad lunch meetings in which we weregiven reports about the NIH’s researchactivities. It was exciting to be in a placewhere so much discovery is going on.”

Roden says that, although his prima-ry focus so far has been on servingpatients in a clinical setting, he now hasa newfound appreciation for research.“Even though I plan to work in privatepractice, I would also like to be involvedat the research level,” he says. “When wego into dentistry, we do it because wewant to help people, and research is agreat way to do that.

“Our school has a wonderful reputa-tion at the NIH,” Roden adds. “Peoplewere always excited to hear that I wasattending the School of Dentistry atUAB.”

By Cheryl Sloan Wray

QUICK—make a connection betweengardening and dentistry. Specialized tools?Splashing fountains? Close, but not theanswer, says Michael Reddy, D.M.D.,professor of periodontology and assistantdean for clinical activity and planning inthe School of Dentistry at UAB.

“It’s called ‘biofilm,’ and it’s the samething that happens with water that’s leftstanding in a garden hose, because bacte-ria will breed wherever there’s stagnantwater,” he says. “There’s the same prob-lem in public drinking fountains—and ofcourse in the lines of a dental chair.”

Not that the idea of keeping thelines clean is a new one, says Reddy.“There have always been policies in placehere in the dental school, such as runningwater through the handpiece and flush-ing out the lines between patients,” hesays. “That might seem like commonsense to many dentists, but that’s partly

because we make a point of includingthat in their training.”

Recent segments on television newsprograms such as “20/20” have led toincreased awareness of water-line purityin the general populace, however. “The TVfolks focused on the question of whetherthe water is safe for anyone,” says Reddy,“but the real concern is with patients whomight be immunocompromised.

“If the average person is exposed tobacteria in water lines, it probably won’thave any effect at all,” he says. “But ifyour patient is someone who is HIV pos-itive or who recently had a liver trans-plant and is on immunosuppressantdrugs, then you could really create aproblem by exposing them to bacteria.”

Reddy says the school’s water sys-tem—and the quality of the city’swater—is already in good shape. “We’vehad our water lines checked and know

that they are in good working order,” hesays, “and the municipal water supply isrelatively clean. But we have plans tomake sure the water we use in our clinicstests even cleaner than city water.”

According to Reddy, the standardfor water quality is based on counting“colony-forming units,” or the number ofbacteria that will grow when a petri dishis exposed to water. “The standard fordrinking water is 500 units. In fact, that’swhat you’ll probably get in the bottledwater you buy at the store,” he says. “Ourgoal is to get the school’s water down toa level of 200, which is the same standardthat’s used for dialysis units.”

The school is working to achievethis goal by flushing each examinationchair with a safe chemical solution oncea week. The new chairs—designed by A-Dec—have a special feature that con-nects a bottle to the water line. “Thisallows us to attach the bottles containingthe solution to each chair once a week,”he says. “Then we draw the solution intothe chair’s water lines and let it sitovernight. A dental assistant will drainthe chairs in the morning and flush thelines with fresh water.

“This feature was only made avail-able recently,” says Reddy. “It was part ofour decision when we were looking fornew chairs, in fact. Not only do we wantthe best equipment for the benefit of ourpatients, but we also want to be sure ourstudents will receive the best possibletraining available.”

By Russ Willcutt

Aqueous SolutionsBanishing Bacteria by Purging the Pipes

IN-LINE RESERVOIRS ALLOW TECHNICIANS TO

ATTACK BACTERIA IN WATER LINES.

THEY SEEM TO BE featured on the eveningnewscasts quite regularly—stories of natural dis-asters and transportation accidents. Floods, tor-nadoes, airplane crashes, and other disasters claimthousands of victims each year. And it’s also afact that someone has to manage the mayhem.

As a member of the Disaster MortuaryOperational Support Team (DMORT), RichardWeems, D.M.D., fills that role. Whether it’s atrain wreck, a car crash, or the aftermath of aforce-five tornado, he lends his professionalexpertise to assist in the recovery and identifica-tion of the victims of disaster.

Team ApproachWorking under the auspices of the NationalDisaster Medical System, the DMORT teammembers represent such fields as forensic den-tistry, medical pathology, and forensic anthro-pology. The team is charged with responding tosuch crises in Region 4—the area consisting ofAlabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi,Tennessee, and North and South Carolina. It

also responds to aviation disasters when theNational Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)asks for help. Weems says the bulk of DMORT’swork involves aviation.

“After the Valujet and TWA plane crashesseveral years ago, Congress pushed the NTSB torespond to any plane crash,” says Weems, who isan associate professor of diagnostic sciences anddirector of student and alumni affairs in theSchool of Dentistry.

Dentists are invaluable to disaster recoveryand victim recognition, he says, since dental x-rays can help identify burned or skeletonizedremains. He says his training in forensic den-tistry makes him especially capable in this area.

“Quite often there’s only a tiny amount ofdental remains left to be examined,” he says, “butI’ve been able to make several identificationsbased on a single recovered tooth.”

Seeking Support for DMORTWeems’s concern for disaster victims didn’tbegin when he was named to the DMORT teamlast April. Some years ago, he and MarioMartinez, D.M.D., a retired UAB dentistry pro-fessor, organized a dental identification team tohandle local disaster situations. Though it’s beenhard to secure adequate funding to train mem-bers over the years, Weems hopes that his workwith DMORT can help bring about a change. “Iapplied for this position partly in hopes ofblending our local volunteer personnel with thefederal system in case a mass disaster shouldoccur here,” he says.

Unfortunately, Weems has already experi-enced two local disasters. He helped identifyvictims of the L’Air Express air crash in westBirmingham, and also victims of the force-fivetornado that struck Oak Grove, Alabama, andsurrounding areas in 1998. Such work can beagonizing. “Although we’re concentrating onthe task at hand, the devastation we witness canbe quite troubling.”

No Lack of InterestIn an attempt to educate more dental profes-sionals about DMORT as well as other aspectsof forensic dentistry, Weems shares his experi-ence and expertise through continuing educa-tion courses.

“I’m pleased to say that, after nearly everysession, people approach me to ask how theycan volunteer or become involved.”

12 Contact

BY CHERYL

SLOAN WRAY

FORENSIC DENTISTRY EXPERT RICHARD WEEMS, AT LEFT, IS A MEMBER OF THE

DISASTER MORTUARY OPERATIONAL RESPONSE TEAM (DMORT).

Addressing the

AftermathDentistry

Central to

Disaster

Response

AT THE ALABAMA SPECIAL OLYMPICS heldin Tuscaloosa last May, everyone was a winner—and not just the 1,500 Special Olympians whocompeted. More than 50 faculty and studentsfrom the School of Dentistry at UAB attended,providing dental instruction and assistance forthese very special athletes as part of the “SpecialSmiles” program.

“We made custom mouthguards for thecompetitors, gave them visual oral exams,coached them on proper brushing and flossing,scored them on their oral home care, andrewarded them with ‘healthy’ goody bags,” saysElizabeth Clemente, D.M.D. “We even helpedreferee an athletic event or two.”

A Special SituationAccording to Clemente, an assistant professor ofrestorative dentistry and coordinator of theAdvanced Education in General Dentistry pro-gram, this was the third year of the school’sinvolvement in the event. She points out thatSpecial Smiles is the first opportunity many ofthe dental students and practitioners have had towork with special-needs individuals. “One of mygoals in starting this community service projectwas to take away the myths about treatingpatients such as these,” she explains. “Many den-tists don’t feel comfortable dealing with special-needs people. I wanted to help train a new gen-eration of dentists who are familiar with themand have no qualms about handling the differentoral issues special-needs patients can present.”

Clemente says the experience was a goodone for herself and for the students, as well: “Ican’t say enough about how great our studentsare in working with the Special Olympians. Notonly do they volunteer their time for SpecialSmiles, but they also have to come to a trainingsession before they can participate in the event.I show them a videotape to prepare them fordealing with special-needs people.”

She also notes that Special Smiles givesfirst-year students their first opportunity to dealwith patients in a clinical setting. In addition togaining invaluable experience, they also enjoybeing treated like doctors for the first time—“and they have a lot of fun.”

Dental DataAn added bonus to the personal experience isthe clinical data gleaned from the screeningexams the School of Dentistry volunteers con-duct as part of the event. According to MaureenL. Pezzementi, D.M.D., assistant professor ofrestorative dentistry, the data collected duringthe 1999 Alabama Special Olympics indicatedthat the dental needs of the state’s special ath-letes are not being met. “Alabama’s SpecialOlympians are 1.5 times more likely to haveactive tooth decay, 1.7 times more likely to havemolar decay, and 2.5 times more likely to have‘urgent care needs’ than the average nationalSpecial Olympian,” she says. Pezzementiexplains that this information may be used toobtain federally funded insurance coverage forspecial-needs people so that they can get thedental care they need.

To help support Special Smiles, please con-tact Pezzementi at (205) 975-0899.

Contact 13

Students Support

Special Olympics

BY NORMA

BUTTERWORTH-MCKITTRICK

STUDENTS IN THE

UAB SCHOOL OF

DENTISTRY HAVE A

LONG HISTORY OF

SUPPORTING THE

SPECIAL OLYMPICS.

Athletic Assıstance

14 Contact

GROWING UP in São Paulo, Brazil,Raquel Mazer, D.D.S., was surroundedby dentistry. “I have several relatives whoare or were dentists, including aunts,uncles, and cousins,” says Mazer. “Evenmy great uncle was a dentist. That’s whyI’ve always been fascinated by the metic-ulous work involved in providing dentalcare.” Although her relatives had someinfluence on her decision to pursue den-tistry as a career, she found herself drawn

to the research bench instead of theexamination chair.

Even while attending the Universityof São Paulo, where she received herdental degree in 1983, Mazer felt theinfluence of the United States. “The cur-riculum we followed was based on the‘American’ model, so I had the opportu-nity to experiment with materials andexperience a variety of techniques thatare utilized here at UAB,” she explains.

In 1986 she took advantage of anopportunity to study under Karl Leinfelder,D.M.D, who is now retired from theDepartment of Biomaterials. “I had decidedthat I wanted to concentrate my effortsin the area of cosmetic restorative mate-rials, and Dr. Leinfelder was the leadingauthority in that field,” says Mazer. “I alsobased my decision on the fact that UABhad an outstanding record of carryingout major clinical research studies and

Raquel Mazer

GOOD TEACHING is about more thansimply giving instructions. To keep thestudent’s attention, the successful educa-tor must possess a rare combination ofprofessional knowledge and communica-tion skills. According to his students andcolleagues, Patrick Louis, D.D.S.—anassociate professor of oral and maxillofa-cial surgery—is just that type of teacher.

“Being a good surgeon doesn’talways mean that you’re a good teacher,too,” says Chris Mullenix, D.M.D., afifth-year surgical resident who hasknown Louis for the past decade. “Some

surgeons tell you what to do, but theydon’t always tell you why. Dr. Louis takesthe time to explain his reasoning.”

As course master for a variety ofclasses, Louis is responsible for organiz-ing lecture content, calling on experts inspecialized areas to share their experi-ences, and teaching many of the classeshimself. He also serves as director of theresidency program in the Department ofOral and Maxillofacial Surgery.

“He’s not an eight-to-five teacher,that’s for sure,” says Will West, D.M.D., asixth-year resident. “He’s here at six in

the morning, and he often doesn’t leaveuntil eight o’clock at night—or later.”

Louis estimates that he spends abouthalf of his time teaching and the remain-der in surgery. His clinical practice is asvaried as his teaching regimen, includingtrauma, orthognathics, implants, cosmet-ics, and dentoalveolar dentistry. He saysteaching makes him a better surgeon.

“We’re here to give the patients ourbest effort, and I try to demonstrate the bestway to do that to my students,” he says.“I also use pictures from my cases in class,so it’s a very positive circle—my surgicalpractice influences my teaching, andteaching also influences my practice.”

Louis adjusts his approach to thelevel of the class he’s teaching. “Quiteoften, undergraduate students have somany classes that they’re struggling justto get through them,” he says, “but theresidents are easier to motivate. They’rein your class because they’ve selectedyour specialty.”

Patrick LouisThe Student’s Surgeon

Faculty Focus

From South America to the School of Dentistry

Contact 15

was the leader in discovering estheticmaterials to replace the dental amalgam.”

During her first year at UAB, Mazerreceived an international scholarshipfrom the Rotary Foundation and wasaccepted into the graduate program,eventually being elected to the NationalDental Honor Society. She received a mas-ter’s degree in dentistry in 1988—workingas a Rotary International Graduate Scholarfrom 1986 to 1987—and her D.M.D.degree in 1996. During that time, in 1991,Mazer received her Master of PublicHealth degree from Johns HopkinsUniversity. She now serves as the direc-tor of operative dentistry at UAB.

In addition to her administrative andteaching duties, Mazer is faculty repre-sentative for the Phi Phi Chapter of theOmicron Kappa Upsilon. She is alsoinvolved in clinical research, testingcomposite resin materials and adhesive

agents. Through the comparison of dif-ferent systems—different light-curingmodes to enhance performance of com-posite resins—she evaluates the materi-als’ performance and refines techniquesfor their use. She is also exploring the useof air-abrasion devices for dental cavitypreparation and as an adjunct adhesivetreatment for esthetic materials.

Mazer says she enjoys academicdentistry and being involved in makingimportant discoveries related to estheticmaterials. She plans to broaden herresearch to include the utilization of den-tal lasers for oral-health care. “I’ve recent-ly received an Educational FoundationGrant that will allow us to purchase anEr: YAG dental laser,” she says. “Havingthat type of cutting-edge equipment onhand will be invaluable for training stu-dents, faculty, and other dental profes-sionals, as well.” By Ella Robinson

Louis grew up in New Iberia,Louisiana, where he attended the Uni-versity of Southwestern Louisiana beforeentering the dental school at LouisianaState University. After earning hisD.D.S. degree from LSU in 1984, heserved a general practice residency atUAB and then entered the oral surgeryprogram. Louis earned an M.D. degree in1988 and his certificate in oral and max-illofacial surgery in 1990. He has been atUAB ever since, and he now serves onseveral university committees and as anexaminer for the American Board of Oraland Maxillofacial Surgeons.

“I came to UAB because of people likeVictor Matukas and Charles McCallum,who were real trendsetters in the field,”says Louis. “And I’ve stayed because ofthe vision of the current chair, Peter Waite.Because of these men, many consider thisto be the best oral and maxillofacialsurgery program in the country.”

By Sandra Bearden

GROWING UP on his family’s farm,Tommy Weatherford, D.M.D., under-standably thought he might enjoy acareer in veterinary medicine. During hissophomore year at Auburn, however, herealized that he was more interested inhumans than horses. “My dad was payingthe bills, though, so I thought I’d betterfinish what I’d already started,” he sayswith a smile.

After earning his degree fromAuburn’s College of Veterinary Medicinein 1954, Weatherford joined the U.S.Army and served during the Korean War.

Once his tour was complete, he decidedto take advantage of the GI Bill to pursuehis dream of treating people. He appliedto the School of Dentistry at UAB, wasaccepted, and began his studies in the fallof 1957.

“My wife, Buddie, and I had gottenmarried the week before classes started,and we had planned to spend four yearsin Birmingham and then move to a nicelittle town we’d picked out in north Florida,”he recalls. “But Dr. Joseph Volker, whowas dean at the time, asked me to join thefaculty once I’d graduated, and he was avery persuasive man. To make a longstory short, we’ve been here ever since.”

Before taking on his teaching respon-sibilities, Weatherford spent a year study-ing pathology and pediatric dentistry atUAB on a National Institutes of Healthfellowship before completing his residencyin periodontics—the specialty he hastaught for the past 40 years in the dentalschool. He was director of the residencyprogram for 20 years, also seeing patientsin the faculty intramural practice.

Although his long-term plans didn’toriginally include Birmingham—or evendentistry, in a way—Weatherford saysthat he’s glad things have worked out asthey have. “I’ve had opportunities to moveelsewhere over the years, but wheneverI’ve gotten a job offer, I’ve made a list ofthe pluses and the minuses,” he says, “andthe pluses at UAB always greatly exceed-ed those elsewhere.”

By Norma Butterworth-McKittrick

Trading Pets for Periodontics

Thomas Weatherford

Faculty Focus

16 Contact

WHEN PRISCILA DENNY traveledfrom Brazil to visit the UAB campussix years ago, she never imagined thatshe would soon be enrolled as a stu-dent here. She was happy studyingdentistry in her home country and hadonly come to the United States to seean uncle who was participating in afellowship on campus.

“I spent time meeting members ofthe dental faculty and taking picturesof the campus,” Denny recalls, “but Inever dreamed that I’d be back at UABin less than a year.”

Fate intervened, however, when shemet Gregory Denny, a local attorney,and soon found herself with a strongdesire to relocate to Birmingham tocomplete her dental studies. The cou-ple were married in October of 1994.

Today, Denny is a senior honorstudent with plans to become anorthodontist after she completes herstudies in May. When she first trans-ferred to UAB, however, graduationseemed a million years away. None ofthe credits she had already compiledin Brazil transferred to the UnitedStates, and Denny was informed thatshe would be required to start overagain as a college student. Instead ofbeing defeated, she got busy, complet-ing her undergraduate degree in twoyears. She then took and passed theDAT and embarked once again on thestudy of dentistry.

On her arrival in the UnitedStates, Denny found herself faced witha major transition and much to learn interms of American—and especially

Southern—culture. In order to accli-mate herself, she turned to television,watching the game show “Jeopardy” asoften as twice a day to speed heracquisition of the language.

“I probably learned most of what Iknow about the English language,English literature, and other factsabout the United States from watch-ing ‘Jeopardy,’” she says with a laugh.“Say what you will, but it was very use-ful to me.”

An interesting result was her hus-band’s growing interest in game-showcompetition, which eventually resultedin his appearance on his wife’s favoriteshow. Winning a slot on “Jeopardy” onlyfueled Gregory Denny’s competitivefires, and he went on to appear on thewildly popular “Who Wants to Be aMillionaire?” during its inaugural week.

Apart from American culture ingeneral, Denny also found universitylife to be very different from that ofher home. In Brazil, she says, college isfree for students who qualify academi-cally. Her family questioned her deci-sion to give up such an offer.

“They thought I was crazy when Itold them I was moving here,” shesays. “They couldn’t believe that Iwould give up a free education. Butnow they are all very happy.

“UAB is very different from theschools in Brazil,” she says. “I feel likeI am learning much more here than Idid back home.”

By Cheryl Sloan Wray

Priscila Denny

IF YOU NEED a walking definition ofthe word variety, just take a walk withMatt Brewer. In his third year of study inthe School of Dentistry, he’s also prepar-ing for his third career.

After graduating from Georgia Techwith a degree in electrical engineering in1988, he took a job with a companyknown as Cross Systems before movingon to a position with AT&T. In 1990,however, his brother John approachedhim with an offer he simply couldn’trefuse. “John wanted us to form a part-nership to start a chain of Steak-Outrestaurants,” Brewer says, referring to thenow-familiar steak delivery service that isbased in Norcross, Georgia. “None were

FOR MANY DENTAL STUDENTS, thebiggest challenge in training lies in mas-tering the eye-to-hand coordination theprofession requires. It’s tough enough tobegin with, but add a broken arm to theequation and you’ve got the makings of apretty frustrating experience. Just ask stu-dents Sunil Philip and Chrisy Congo,who endured that very challenge duringtheir preclinical training.

Although the two “fell” into their sit-uations quite differently—Philip whileplaying football with his classmates andCongo on a Christmas ski trip—both

The Academic Emigré

Going for Broke at UAB

Chrisy Congo and

Sunil Philip

It’s All in the Delivery

Matt Brewer

Student Spotlight

Contact 17

located in Birmingham at the time, so itsounded like a pretty good idea.”

Brewer worked with his brother forseven years, learning to manage cooks anddrivers and building a successful fran-chise in the process. “It’s a very interest-ing line of work, but also very demand-ing,” he says, adding that his brother isstill running the business. “At one timewe were in charge of four locations in

Birmingham plus another one in Florida.”In 1995, right around the Thanks-

giving holiday, everything changed forBrewer. He was involved in an automobileaccident that required more than a yearof recuperation and extensive physicalrehabilitation. In light of that experience,he began considering entering the med-ical arena himself. “I had a lot of time tothink and a lot of direct experience withmedical procedures,” he says, “and so Ifigured that I had two choices. One wasthat I could become a plastic surgeon.But then I thought about how importantit is for a person to be able to smile—andthat’s why I chose dentistry.”

During his recuperation, Brewerreceived encouragement from a greatmany people, but particularly from hiswife, Jacque Hancock, M.D.—a physi-cian at the Shelby Baptist MedicalCenter—and close friend JamesSanderson, Jr., D.M.D. “I credit my wife

injuries required corrective surgery ontheir right arms, and both studentsshared the same hard task of retainingtheir class standing during recovery.

Soon after Philip’s tough break, hisfreshman class began studying dentalanatomy, and that forced him to create atechnique of his own to complete theassigned tooth carvings. “Right after theaccident I used a working splint with

open ends so that my hand had supportwhile my fingers were free to work,” hesays. “Although it hurt pretty badly, I wasable to get through the exercises.”

Congo acknowledges that the chal-lenge of learning operative skills usingher left hand alone was difficult. “It wasvery frustrating because some things youjust can’t do with your left hand, or theassignment would require two hands, andmy cast was too bulky to work with attimes,” she says, adding that she wasdetermined to stick with her studies. “I’ddecided that I would just be a left-hand-ed dentist, if that’s what it took.”

Philip and Congo agree that theexperience helped them realize their pas-sion for dentistry. “A lot of people saidthey could never work with their lefthands like we did, but you can’t knowwhat you’re capable of until you’re putinto a situation like that,” says Congo.

Both students now recognize thevalue of healthy, agile hands—something

they once took for granted. “You don’treally think about what your hands arethere for and what they allow you to dountil they are suddenly taken away fromyou,” says Philip.

Although the experience was highlystressful, both mentally and physically,Congo and Philip agree that, instead ofhampering their progress, the challengemade them stronger. “I just had to take adeep breath when things got tough andremember that, eventually, this would allseem like a minor setback,” says Philip.

Congo adds that the encouragementshe and Philip received from faculty andtheir fellow students was invaluable.“Everyone was constantly offering theirhelp,” she says. “Our professors madetime adjustments for our assignments,and our lab partners would even let us‘borrow’ a hand when Sunil and I neededone. Support like that really helps.”

By Rebecca McCracken

with leading me toward the medical fieldand my friend with guiding me into den-tistry,” he says.

Because of the accident, Brewerapproaches his study with a unique per-spective. “There is a difference betweenthe mechanics of medicine and the art ofits practice, which Dr. Liu in particularhelped me realize,” he says of his mentorPerng-Ru Liu, D.M.D. “All of our profes-sors demonstrate excellence in theirapproach to each situation, and theyexpect the same thing from us.”

Brewer, who is a licensed pilot andcurrently lives with his wife on their 30-acre farm just outside of Birmingham, sayshe’s learned something important duringeach phase of his career: “Engi-neeringtaught me to think, and Steak-Out taughtme to be an employer, but dentistrytaught me the importance of a smile.”

By Ella Robinson

Student Spotlight

18 Contact

CHILDREN HAVE A WAY of following in theirparent’s footsteps. Whether it be law, business,or education, they are often drawn to profes-sions they’ve “experienced” via observing theirparents in those fields. Dentistry is certainly noexception, and the School of Dentistry has along list of family names that have appearedonce, twice, and even three times on the officialrolls. What is it that leads students to follow

their parents to UAB?“I think we offer a learn-

ing experience that’s trulyunique,” says Mary LynneCapilouto, D.M.D., dean ofthe School of Dentistry atUAB. “Our location withinthe medical center providesour students with access toclinical and research opportu-nities that are quite remark-able. In fact, graduates oftenapproach me at our alumnigatherings to say how muchtheir time spent studying atUAB has meant to themthroughout their careers. Andif they share that with me, I’msure they’ve said the samething to their children.”

Security Is Central“I’m so glad you’re here; nowI’ll never have to look foranother dentist!” That’s whatpatients have been saying toPaul G. Petznick, D.M.D.,since he joined his father’swell-established Birmingham

practice in 1989. “Even though my father has noplans to retire, our patients still seem reassuredto have someone else in the family here to treatthem,” says Paul of his father, George P.Petznick, D.M.D. “That reassurance of ongoinghealth care with someone they know plays a

large part in patient satisfaction. It’s like a secu-rity blanket.”

Paul is actually the third generation in hisfamily to practice dentistry, following in thefootsteps of both his father and his great-grand-father. “My father died early,” says George, “andmy mother sent me to live with my grandfather,who was a general dentist in Pell City. He con-tinued to practice until he was 93 years old, andsome of his former patients still come here to seeus for treatment.”

And Paul wasn’t the only one of George’schildren to follow him into dentistry. His sister,Charlotte, also graduated from UAB’s School ofDentistry and practiced in California beforemoving to Massachusetts last year.

George points out that he didn’t push eitherof his children to go into dentistry—or even toattend UAB, although he says “it is the best den-tal school in the country.” Both Paul andCharlotte were working on undergraduatedegrees in finance before they decided to pursuecareers in dentistry, and George himself had tochoose between becoming a pilot or a dentist.

Of Pilots and ProstheticsAfter graduating from the U.S. Air Force JetFighter Pilot School in 1957, George Petznickwas offered a job by Delta at the same time helearned that he’d been accepted by the School ofDentistry. Given his family’s strong interest inhealth care—evidenced by the fact that hisgrandfather and two uncles were doctors—andhis own experience working in a hospital duringhis teenage years, George chose dentistry. Hemanaged to keep himself aloft, however, servingwith the Air Force in Berlin and retiring onlyrecently as a colonel in the Air National Guard,in which he was commander of the 160thTactical Reconnaissance Squadron. Luckily, hefound dentistry to be equally engaging.

“I had the opportunity to work in the dentallab while I was in school, and I became fascinat-ed with prosthetic esthetics. I just like the wholeprocess,” he says, from deciding how to besttreat a patient to the “artwork” involved in fash-ioning a bridge, implant, or some other devicethat will make a patient look and feel better.“The pleasure I get from helping my patients isextremely fulfilling.”

George says that his son shares his interestin producing the best possible dental prosthet-ics. “It’s fun to discuss cases and treatment

BY NORMA

BUTTERWORTH-MCKITTRICK

FootstepsDental

Tradition Is

a Family

Affair

Following in the

GEORGE AND PAUL PETZNICK

LEWIS AND WILL CHAPMAN

Contact 19

options with Paul,” he says, adding that a greatdeal of advance preparation went into pavingthe way for a smooth professional relationship.They renovated the office space, and they pur-chased new computers to streamline the busi-ness side of the practice.

The partners decided to make a smoothtransition so that longtime patients would becomfortable with the new arrangement, firstsending out a letter introducing Paul and empha-sizing that George was not retiring. “Paul beganbacking me up at first, doing the final checkafter the hygienists had finished with theircleanings, and then gradually beginning to takeon his own cases,” says George. “It wasn’t justabout giving my patients a chance to get toknow Paul, though, because he needed sometime to learn about them, too.”

Shared PhilosophyPaul says that it’s especially important to stayfocused on the professional aspects of the jobwhen working with a member of your own family.“My father and I respect each other as profession-als,” he says, “and one of the things that makesour partnership so successful is that we see eye-to-eye on how we want to provide treatment toour patients. Although we might disagree aboutthe type of material to use in a prosthetic devicesometimes, we share the same treatment philos-ophy—that we are here to care for our patientsand to do all we can to help them.”

He also acknowledges that entering anestablished business allowed him to begin hiscareer without the financial pressures associatedwith starting a new practice. “Dad is still the boss,which even he will admit that he really enjoys,”says Paul. “But that’s ideal for me, since I’d ratherconcentrate on working with patients than busi-ness at this point in my career.”

Having his son as his partner is helping tokeep him young, George says, and even thoughthey’ve stepped on each other’s toes at times,that’s to be expected in any business partnership.

“Not to sound sappy, but I’m really pleasedthat my children followed me into my chosenprofession.”

Orthodontics the Obvious ChoiceLewis P. Chapman, D.M.D., is another UABalum who is looking forward to practicing withhis son in the very near future. WilliamChapman plans to join his father’s successful

Montgomery orthodontics practice after hisgraduation from the School of Dentistry in thesummer of 2002.

Like George Petznick, Lewis didn’t push hisson—who is known as “Will”—into becoming adentist or working alongside him. That choicewas purely his son’s. “I’ve worked with my fatherover the summer a couple of times and I reallyenjoyed it,” says Will. “I also made a point of vis-iting other dentists to make sure not only that Iwanted to be a dentist, but also that I wanted tospecialize in orthodontics. I needed to make surethat this was my own decision and not just theeasy or obvious choice.”

Both father and son agree that orthodonticsis a “great profession.” They enjoy helping peo-ple, especially children. “We don’t give injec-tions or administer drugs,” says Lewis, “andwe’ve made a point of creating a light, happyatmosphere in our office so that our youngerpatients won’t be frightened.”

The fact that Chapman’s practice is such asuccess may have something to do with his “pre-dentistry” days, when he earned both a bache-lor’s degree from Birmingham-Southern and anMBA from the University of Alabama beforeentering the School of Dentistry at UAB.

“I’d always known that I wanted to own myown business. I just didn’t know what kind ofbusiness it would be,” he says. “For some reason,a number of my friends said that they thought I’dmake a good dentist, and that started to make agreat deal of sense.”

Will shares his father’s interest in both busi-ness and dentistry, also having earned an under-graduate business degree from Birmingham-Southern before charting a course toward den-tistry. He says the effect of his decision on fam-ily dynamics is also interesting. “My father and Ireally do enjoy talking about patients and differ-ent treatment strategies,” he says. “But we haveto do it off to the side so that my two brothersdon’t get jealous.”

Sharing the SatisfactionLewis Chapman says that he’s never doubted thewisdom of his decision to study dentistry at UAB.“I’ve been doing exactly what I wanted to do forthe past 27 years,” he says, “and I’m looking for-ward to sharing that same satisfaction with Will.

“It’s especially nice to know this practicethat I’ve created is going to stay right here inthe family.”

Professional pointersfrom George and PaulPetznick, and Lewisand Will Chapman:

• As a parent, don’tpush your son ordaughter into enter-ing your profession.As a child, do someinvestigating andmake sure this is theprofession that youreally want to pursue.

• No matter whoyou’re entering intoa practice with,make sure that youshare the same phi-losophy of treatingpatients.

• In work situationswith family mem-bers, always treateach other as pro-fessional coworkers.

• Discuss businessoptions and agreeon financial termsahead of time.

• Plan ahead tomake sure there isenough office spacefor everyone.

• Inform yourpatients and staffabout your partner-ship so they won’tbe caught off guard.

• Hand off patientsgradually so theywill remain confi-dent that theirneeds will continueto be met in a satis-factory fashion.

KEEPING THE PEACE

CONTACT—How did you end up in dentistry?

EDWARDS—I had a biology teacher in highschool who was also my science teacher when Iwas in grammar school. Her name was EugenaCorina, and she was an incredibly stimulatingperson. She took three of us to Baptist MontclairHospital during our sophomore year to watch anactual surgery being done, and so I was reallycharged up about medicine after that. But then Imet a dentist along the way by the name ofClarence Mills, and he was such a fine individualthat I really thought I’d like dentistry, and so thatkind of changed my path a little.

CONTACT—What brought you to UAB?

EDWARDS—The fact that it has such a strongpremed and predentistry program. I was origi-nally enrolled at Birmingham-Southern, butthen I transferred to UAB, where I majored inbiology and chemistry. Once I had earned mybachelor’s degree, I immediately entered theSchool of Dentistry.

CONTACT—How did you end up practicing inWedowee?

EDWARDS—When I was in dental school I hada professor named Dr. Wesley Young who wasvery involved with the Indian Health Service.During my junior year he mentioned an oppor-tunity to serve an externship with the U.S.Public Health Service in St. Ignatius, Montana,which I applied for and then completed. Thosefour months were a terrific experience, andwhen I came back I had a whole new outlook onthe importance of serving rural areas. It felt sogood knowing that not only was I making a liv-ing, but I was also in a beautiful place wherepeople in the community were so kind andappreciative. Then, coincidentally, Dr. DavidGreer, who was the dean of student affairs atthat time, called me out in the hall one day andsaid, “There’s this little town in the eastern part

20 Contact

Michael EdwardsA Conversation with

In each issue ofContact, we will

include a “question andanswer” interview with analumnus or alumna of the

School of Dentistry atUAB. In this issue we

meet Michael Edwards,D.M.D., whose clinic in

Wedowee, Alabama,stands as a working

example of putting patienteducation into practice.

Edwards received hisD.M.D. degree from theUniversity of AlabamaSchool of Dentistry in

1979, going on to establishhis practice in an under-

served community withouta single dentist in residence.

His practice has sincegrown along with thetown itself. For more

information on Edwards’spractice, please visit hisWeb site at [miketooth.

dentistryonline.com].

of the state that’s been calling here every year forthe past 10 years trying to get a dentist to comedown there.” So my wife, Terri, and I drove toWedowee one weekend and actually met withthe mayor. In these small towns everybody turnsout to meet you, and they were just so nice to usand so supportive that we thought we’d try it fora while. That was 21 years ago.

CONTACT—Tell me about the early years andabout how your practice has evolved.

EDWARDS—We built a little office with thehelp of a local builder, and we were busy fromthe day we opened the doors. Since that timethey built the dam and created Lake Wedowee,which turned the town into a resort community.Because of that we’ve grown to a staff of sevenpeople and tripled the size of the office. Notonly have we kept our original patients, but wealso now have people from Atlanta andCarrollton and Newnan and the Annistonarea—people from all over the country, in fact,even Minnesota and North Dakota. It’s reallybeen an interesting journey for us.

CONTACT—Do you have a core philosophy interms of running your practice?

EDWARDS—I’ve really been focused on educat-ing people since I started this practice, because Iknew that I was coming into an area that wasdentally uneducated. The fact is, when peoplehave to travel a long way for dental care, theytend not to do it. And so every time I’ve had theopportunity, I’ve tried to integrate patient edu-cation into my practice. We have a “TV net-work” in my office where I can show what’scalled “casey” education—three-minute seg-ments on every procedure in dentistry that webeam into the treatment rooms. This allows usto utilize “dead time” in order to educate patientswhen they’re waiting to get numb or waiting fortheir examination. We also have live, intra-oralcameras in every part of the office so they cansee exactly what we see as we’re working.Patients can also visit our Web site to look attheir post-treatment instructions, so everythingis really linked together.

CONTACT—That sounds better than just hand-ing them the latest issue of Field and Stream.

End Notes

EDWARDS—That’s right. When you’re nolonger facing the unknown, you’re a lot morerelaxed in a dental office, and it also makes seda-tion less necessary.

CONTACT—So you actually find that educat-ing your patients makes sedation less necessary?

EDWARDS—Absolutely. Even their blood pres-sure is lower than usual. I treat a lot of high-riskpatients because I’ve been certified in intra-venous sedation, and those patients are muchcalmer once we’ve explained the procedures andcounseled them about how the procedures areperformed.

CONTACT—As a private practitioner, what doyou bring to your work in the dental school’sComprehensive Care Program?

EDWARDS—I think the most important thingis that I help students work through the proce-dures they’ll face from a real-life perspective.Once they graduate they’ll be entering a con-sumer-driven, highly litigious society, and they’reinterested in all aspects of patient management.

CONTACT—Would you describe your work inthe program as a good experience to your col-leagues in private practice?

EDWARDS—Oh, yes. This program is anentirely new concept, and dental schools aroundthe nation are watching UAB very closely to seethe results. It’s about pulling all of the specialtiesand all of the clinical requirements togetherunder one clinic in order to give students a graspof what private practice will be like once theygraduate. Dean Capilouto has been incrediblyinnovative in putting this together. I think she isreally on the cutting edge in coming up with thisidea, and I hope that it continues to develop andgrow.

CONTACT—What do you take away fromyour work at UAB that’s useful in your practice?

EDWARDS—I enjoy being exposed to all thegreat research that’s going on in the dentalschool—the fact that there is this river of infor-mation flowing through it. It’s also a pleasureworking with the students. It keeps you enthusi-astic about dentistry, because it’s easy to get in arut no matter what you’re doing.

Contact 21

DENTAL DEVELOPMENTS

As the Campaign for UAB progresses—and we continue working towardthe university-wide goal of reaching $350 million in donations—we wouldlike to remind dentistry supporters that there are as many ways to giveas there are reasons to do so. Gifts made to the School of Dentistrywill go entirely to the school, and the actual cost of a gift to thedonor may be reduced by tax savings. Because aspects of some gifts arehighly technical or subject to different tax consequences, we encourageour donors to consult with an attorney, accountant, or other qualifiedadvisor. Here are the major types of contributions that can be made:

Outright Gifts:• CASH: The most frequently used form of giving, cash gifts have theadvantage of providing immediate benefit to School of Dentistry.

• PLEDGES: The School of Dentistry is pleased to receive pledges payableover a period of up to five years. Pledges may be paid in equal or varyingamounts.

• MARKETABLE SECURITIES OR CLOSELY HELD STOCK: Giving appre-ciated securities may have special tax advantages, such as avoiding capitalgains tax and eligibility for a charitable deduction.

Other Outright Gifts Include:• REALIZED TESTAMENTARY GIFTS

• REAL ESTATE OR PERSONAL PROPERTY

• MATCHING GIFTS: employee contributions matched by employer

Deferred or Planned Gifts:• LIFE INSURANCE: By assigning ownership of an insurance policy to theSchool of Dentistry, a donor may qualify for an initial deduction and maybe able to deduct further contributions for premium payments.

• LIFE INCOME GIFTS: Securities, money, or property may be transferredto the School of Dentistry with a provision that periodic payments bemade to the donor or another beneficiary.The school uses the remainingfunds for the purpose designated by the donor.

• BEQUESTS: A benefactor may leave an outright testamentary bequestin cash or provide income for one or more individuals through a testa-mentary trust.The School of Dentistry may also be named as beneficiaryof a residuary or a conditional request.

Other Planned Gifts Include:• CHARITABLE REMAINDER TRUSTS AND POOLED INCOME FUNDS

• CHARITABLE GIFT ANNUITIES

• REMAINDER INTEREST IN A RESIDENCE OR FARM

• CHARITABLE LEAD TRUSTS

To learn more about making a gift to the University of Alabama School ofDentistry, please contact Andrea Martin, director of development, at(205) 934-3601 or amartin@uab.edu.

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