Students, residents exhibit findings at 2025 Scientific Table Clinic

Students and residents of UTHealth Houston School of Dentistry shared research findings and practiced their oral presentations on an assortment of topics at the 2025 Scientific Table Clinic on March 18 in the Denton A. Cooley, MD and Ralph C. Cooley, DDS University Life Center.

The 2025 Student Table Clinic featured 46 presentations (23 DDS, 9 DH, 14 resident).

Certificates and monetary prizes were awarded for outstanding work in three categories (dental student, dental hygiene student, and resident). Funding for the awards were provided through the School of Dentistry’s Office of the Dean. The Houston Section of the American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research gave certificates to the winner of each category, while the UTSD Alumni Association also monetarily recognized dental student honorees. The top finishers were:

• Dental Student Category:
  • First Place ($1,000): Fatemeh Ebrahimi, first year, “The Role of Cilia in Left-Right Patterning in Lateral and Oblique Facial Clefts,” sponsor: Walid Fakhouri, MSc, PhD
  • Second Place ($500): Hanan Abdelgilil, third year, “Biological and Physiochemical Properties of a New Bioceramic Sealer,” sponsor: Erin Loggins, DDS
  • Third Place ($250): Alan Ho, fourth year, “Evaluation of Root Canal Therapy Challenges: A Comparative Analysis of Periapical,” sponsors: Leticia Guajardo-Morales, DDS; David Colmenar, DMD, MSD; and Cleverick Johnson, DDS, MS
• Dental Hygiene Student Category (Second-Year Student Groups):
  • First Place ($1,000): Ivan Medellin and Stephanie Seymour; “Dental Lasers for Caries Prevention,” sponsor: Leanna Nguyen, RDH, BSDH, MS
  • Second Place ($500): Mai Hoang and Amanda Pham; “Dental Management in Patients with Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS),” sponsor: Tulsi Patel, RDH, MHA
  • Third Place ($250): Sandra Barahona and Shadi Fahham; “E-Cigarettes and Changes in Saliva Biomarkers: Unseen Changes in the Mouth,” sponsor: Raha Naderi, RDH, MEd
• Resident Category:
  • First Place ($1,000): Karmen Ancar, DMD, “Comparative Analysis of Human-Generated versus AI-Generated Crowns Using Advanced Digital Dentistry,” sponsors: Michelle Thompson, DDS; Shradhdha Gordhan, DDS; Gary Frey, DDS; and Richard Halpin, MEd, EMBA, EdD
  • Second Place ($500): Dorothy Crowley, DMD, “Physio-Chemical and Biological Properties of Prototype Bioceramic Sealer,” sponsors: Timothy Kirkpatrick, DDS; Erin Loggins, DDS; and Zhen Shen, DMD, MSD
  • Third Place ($250): Sarah Alkhashram, DDS, “Conservative Treatment Plan for a Patient with Osteogenesis Imperfecta with Dentinogenesis Imperfect,” sponsors: Maria Gonzalez, DDS, MS; and Donald Belles, DDS, MS

Additionally, PACE Center Practice Consulting offered the W. Kenneth Horwitz, DDS, Table Clinic Award for Discussion of Ethics and Professionalism. The awardees were as follows:

• First Place ($1,000): Noor Karkoutly, first year, “Effects of Resolvin E1 on Primary Human Gingival-Fibroblast in Bioactive Hydrogels,” sponsors: Danielle Wu, PhD; and Chun-Teh Lee, DDS, DMSc, MS
• Second Place ($700): Sherilynne Moore and Seth Sarquis, second years, “What are the reasons patients may develop pagophagia and how can you manage it as a dentist?” sponsors: Debra Stewart, DDS; and Michelle White, DDS
• Third Place ($300): Tiffany Saba and Carolina Yguerabide, third years, “Special Healthcare Needs; Dental Collaborative Care Model,” sponsor: Erin Potts, DDS

The Student Table Clinic is a time-honored tradition of the School of Dentistry with sponsorship from the Office of the Dean and the PACE Center. Additional sponsorship was provided by Dentsply Sirona; the Denton A. Cooley, MD and Ralph C. Cooley, DDS Endowment Fund for Dental Education; the Houston Section of the AADOCR; and the UTSD Alumni Association.