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UTSD students, residents shine at Star of the South 2020

Written by: Rhonda Whitmeyer | Updated: February 24, 2020

UTSD dental students won their category at the annual Star of the South Dental Meeting. From left are Leora Truong (third place), Vashti Bueso (second), Dane Risinger (first), Dr. Joe Piazza, and Dr. Kenneth Horwitz.
UTSD dental students won their category at the annual Star of the South Dental Meeting. From left are Leora Truong (third place), Vashti Bueso (second), Dane Risinger (first), Dr. Joe Piazza, and Dr. Kenneth Horwitz.

Students, residents and alumni from UTHealth School of Dentistry at Houston won awards in four categories at the 2020 Star of the South Dental Meeting hosted by the Greater Houston Dental Society.

Dane Risinger, Vashti Bueso and Thuy Nhu (Leora) Truong swept the Dental Student Category, placing first, second and third, respectively. Cristina Kinn won first place in the Dental Hygiene Student Category, while Drs. Pamela Ibeto and Gilberto Garcia Jr., both of UTSD’s General Practice Residency, placed first and second, respectively, in the General Dentists Category.  In the Specialists Category, Drs. Chelsea Wehr and Chanica Veranunt won second and third, respectively. 

The W. Kenneth Horwitz, DDS, Awards for Discussion of Ethics and Professionalism went to Drs. Diana Pham (Best Presentation, $1,500), Kimberly Nguyen (Honorable Mention, $750), and Cristina Kinn (Dental Hygiene, $500). Pham and Nguyen are both residents in prosthodontics.   

Here is the complete list of winners, with project titles and mentors:

Dental Students

First Place
3D-Printed Model Shell Thickness Affects Accuracy of Thermoformed Orthodontic Aligners
Dane Risinger
Sponsor: Dr. Kurtis Kasper

Second Place
Assessing Sodium Thiosulfate as a Novel Intermediate Endodontic Irrigant for Inhibiting Brown Precipitate Formation
Vashti Bueso
Sponsors: Dr. Neha Parikh and Dr. Ji Jeong

Third Place
Assessing the Role of Sphingomyelin – Biosynthetic Pathway in EGFR Localization and Function
Thuy Nhu (Leora) Truong
Sponsor: Dr. Dharini van der Hoeven

Dental Hygiene Students

First Place
Dental Health Educational Interventions in the Geriatric Person with Physical and Cognitive Decline with or without Dementia
Cristina Kinn
Sponsor:  Jana Johnsrud, RDH, MSDH

General Dentists

First Place
Analgesics for Liver, Kidney and Heart Patients
Dr. Pamela Ibeto, General Practice Residency
Sponsor: Dr. Michelle Thompson

Second Place
Targeting the Ebp pilus With a Monoclonal Antibody Decreases Enterococcus faecalis Colonization of Dentin
Dr. Gilberto Garcia Jr., General Practice Residency
Sponsor: Dr. Ransome van der Hoeven

Specialists

Second Place
Primary Herpetic Gingivostomatitis Following Hall Technique: A Case Presentation
Dr. Chelsea Wehr, Pediatric Dentistry Resident
Sponsor: Dr. Antonio Cardenas

Third Place
Ten-Year Retrospective Review of Pulpotomies and Indirect Pulp Therapy in Primary Teeth
Dr. Chanica Veranunt, Pediatric Dentistry Resident
Sponsor: Dr. Brett Chiquet

W. Kenneth Horwitz, DDS, Award for Discussion of Ethics and Professionalism

Best Presentation
A Multidisciplinary Approach to an Anterior Tooth Dilemma
Dr. Diana M. Pham, Prosthodontics Resident
Sponsor: Dr. Donald Belles

Honorable Mention
Digital Workflow for One-Time Crown
Dr. Kimberly Nguyen, Prosthodontics Resident
Sponsor: Dr. Ruben Sauceda

Dental Hygiene
Dental Health Educational Interventions in the Geriatric Person with Physical and Cognitive Decline With or Without Dementia
Cristina Kinn, Senior Dental Hygiene Student
Sponsor: Jana Johnsrud, RDH, MSDH

 

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