Dr. Steve Bender is a retired Associate Professor from Texas A&M University College of Dentistry in Dallas Texas where he directed the Facial Pain and Sleep Medicine Clinic. Currently he serves as a guest lecturer for the LSU orofacial pain residency program. He is a Diplomate of the American Board of Orofacial Pain and has earned Fellowships in the American Academy of Orofacial Pain, the American Headache Society, and the American College of Dentists. In addition, he is a past president of the American Academy of Orofacial Pain. He earned his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from Baylor College of Dentistry in Dallas, Texas in 1986 and then studied orofacial pain and temporomandibular disorders at the Parker E Mahan Facial Pain Center at the University of Florida College of Dentistry, Gainesville Florida from 1998 to 2000. Since that time, his practice was limited to the diagnosis and management of orofacial pains. Dr. Bender currently serves as an Associate Editor for CRANIO® The Journal of Craniomandibular & Sleep Practice. He has also published numerous peer reviewed articles and contributed multiple book chapters. Dr. Bender is a frequent invited presenter for both dental and medical conferences.

Emily Kahnert, PT, DPT, PhD, CCTT is a Physical Therapist and clinician scientist in the Temporomandibular Disorders (TMD), Orofacial Pain and Dental Sleep Medicine Clinic at the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry and UMN Physical Therapy Program. Her 21 years of clinical practice have been exclusively focused on treating TMD and Orofacial pain in interdisciplinary settings. She earned her Certified Cervical and Temporomandibular Therapist designation through the Physical Therapy Board of Craniofacial and Cervical Therapeutics in 2019 and is part of the TMD PT Clinical Practice Guideline development group. Her PhD work examined telerehabilitation effectiveness for individuals with TMD, and she is active in teaching and ongoing clinical research examining rehabilitation for patients with orofacial pain.

Dr. Moreno Hay is currently the Division Chief and Program Director of Orofacial Pain at the College of Dentistry, University of Kentucky. She is an Associate Professor at the College of Dentistry, University of Kentucky. She obtained her dental degree from the University Complutense of Madrid, School of Dentistry (Spain). Dr. Moreno graduated from the 2-year CODA approved program in Orofacial Pain at the University of Kentucky in 2013. She became a Diplomate of the American Board of Orofacial Pain in 2015, and Diplomate of the American Board Dental Sleep Medicine. She is currently the President Elect of the AAOP and Chair of the Scientific Committee of the SEDCYDO. She is also an active member of the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine. She has published several research articles in peer reviewed journals, book chapters, and has lectured in scientific national and international meetings.

Dr. Mariona Mulet Pradera is an orofacial pain specialist in St Paul, MN. She is board-certified by the American Board of Orofacial Pain (ABOP) and by the American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine (ABDSM). She has dedicated her career to the field of orofacial pain since 2001, and provides care to orofacial pain patients in a multidisciplinary clinical setting at Health Partners Group in Minnesota. She is also the Associate Program Director of the Orofacial Pain Graduate Program at the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry. She is currently the immediate past president of the American Academy of Orofacial Pain (AAOP).

Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Weber (USAF) – Dr. Weber serves as Director of Orofacial Pain at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, TX. He received his certificate in Orofacial Pain from the University of Kentucky College of Dentistry in 2014. Dr. Weber is a Diplomate of the American Board of Orofacial Pain and a fellow of the American Academy of Orofacial Pain.

I am currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Division of Sleep and Circadian Disorders at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School. My academic and clinical background includes training in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, which has shaped my strong interest in evidence-based medicine and the development of minimally invasive treatments for a wide spectrum of craniomaxillofacial conditions.

Under the mentorship of my supervisors, my current research focuses on obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), particularly in understanding the underlying mechanisms that contribute to the disorder, such as different endotypes, and evaluating the outcomes of pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments.

Looking ahead, I aspire to pursue a career as a surgeon-scientist. I am especially interested in exploring how minimally invasive surgical therapies can be effectively combined with non-surgical approaches to optimize treatment outcomes.

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Dr. Monteiro reported no financial conflicts of interest.

Dr. Adams is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Pediatric Rheumatology at Corewell Beaumont Hospital and Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine. He attended medical school at SUNY-Downstate and completed residency at Kings County Hospital. He completed his Pediatric Rheumatology fellowship at the University of Mighigan.

Sherwin Arman, D.M.D., M.P.H., is an associate clinical professor and director of the Orofacial Pain and Dysfunction residency program and department of Continuing Dental Education at the UCLA School of Dentistry. He completed his dental education at Boston university, his residency in orofacial pain at UCLA and MPH degree from UC Berkeley. 

Dr. Padilla is a Professor of Clinical Dentistry and the program director for the Advanced Program in Orofacial Pain at Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC. She completed her DDS in Costa Rica and pursued further education in Orofacial Pain at UCLA. She holds a master’s in education from Latin University and is currently a master student for Project Management at Bovard College in USC.  Dr. Padilla has lectured internationally and published in the areas of orofacial pain and scholarship of teaching.

Dr. James Hawkins currently serves as Chair of the Orofacial Pain Center at the Naval Postgraduate Dental School (NPDS) in Bethesda, MD, as well as the Orofacial Pain Specialty Leader to the Navy Surgeon General. He completed a residency in Orofacial Pain at NPDS and received a Master’s Degree in Oral Biology from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in 2015. In 2017, he received a certificate in Medical Acupuncture from Helms Medical Institute. Dr. Hawkins is a Diplomate of the American Board of Orofacial Pain and the American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine. His recent academic awards include the NPDS Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence (2021) and the Walter Reed Associate Master Clinician Award (2021). He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the American Academy of Orofacial Pain. He is also an oral board examiner for the American Board of Orofacial Pain.

Commander Abby Schmidt (USNR) – Dr. Schmidt served on Active Duty in the United States Navy for 11 years. During that time, she completed an Orofacial Pain residency at the Naval Postgraduate Dental School in 2018. In 2022, she moved back to her home state of Michigan and began private practice at the Michigan Center for Facial pain and Sleep in the metropolitan Detroit area. Dr. Schmidt is a Diplomate of the American Board of Orofacial Pain and a fellow of the American Academy of Orofacial Pain.

Commander Preston Criddle (USN) – Dr. Criddle serves as the Orofacial Pain Residency Program Director at the Naval Postgraduate Dental School, Naval Medical Leader and Professional Development Command, in Bethesda, MD. He is a Diplomate of the American Board of Orofacial Pain and a fellow of the American Academy of Orofacial Pain.

Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Dr. Hargitai graduated from Case Western Reserve University, School of Dentistry in 1996. Dr. Hargitai completed his Oral Medicine residency in 2002, and a fellowship in Orofacial Pain in 2004, both at the Naval Postgraduate Dental School (NPDS), while receiving a Master of Science from the George Washington University. He received a certificate in Medical Acupuncture from the Helms Medical Institute in 2010 and a Certificate in Teaching by the Uniformed Services University in 2016.

Dr. Hargitai is a Diplomate of the American Board of Oral Medicine as well as the American Board of Orofacial Pain. His research interests lie in characterizing patients with chronic pain. CAPT Hargitai currently serves as Professor and Staff at the Oral Medicine and Orofacial Pain departments at NPDS, Bethesda, MD.

Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Weber (USAF) – Dr. Weber serves as Director of Orofacial Pain at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, TX. He received his certificate in Orofacial Pain from the University of Kentucky College of Dentistry in 2014. Dr. Weber is a Diplomate of the American Board of Orofacial Pain and a fellow of the American Academy of Orofacial Pain.

Lieutenant Colonel Paul Goforth (USA) – Dr. Goforth is a board-certified Endodontist and is currently pursuing Orofacial Pain specialty training at Navy Postgraduate Dental School, Naval Medical Leader and Professional Development Command.

Dr. Dace Zvirbulis is a board-certified neurologist and headache medicine specialist, who completed her neurology residency at Latvian Medical Academy, Riga, Latvia and additional neurology residency at Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit, MI.  

She is a Division Chief of Headache and Facial Pain Division Department of Neurology at Henry Ford Hospital and Assistant Professor of Neurology at Wayne State University.

Dr. Zvirbulis is passionate about providing comprehensive care for patients with headache disorders, including offering outpatient infusion treatments and office based procedures such as botulinum toxin injections and nerve blocks.

Education

• Latvian Medical Academy, 1994

Residencies & Internships

• Latvian Medical Academy, Neurology, 2000
• Henry Ford Hospital, Transitional, MI, 2006
• Henry Ford Hospital, Neurology, MI, 2009

Board Certifications

·         American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology – Neurology

·         United Council for Neurologic Subspecialties- Headache Medicine

Languages

·         English, Latvian, Russian

Dr. Nojan Bakthiari graduated from New York University College of Dentistry in 2011, followed by a 1-year General Practice Dentistry Program at Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center. He then completed a 2-year CODA-accredited Orofacial Pain program at New York University College of Dentistry. He started a private practice part time while teaching part time at Yale New Haven Hospital, Oral Surgery Department. Later on, he led the Orofacial Pain didactic and clinical curriculum at the University of Connecticut, School of Dental Medicine. Currently, he has an academic appointment at Columbia University but spends the majority of his time in his own private practice. His practice is one of the few ones which from its inception was limited to evidence-based care of temporomandibular disorders, orofacial pain and associated headaches. He also serves on the Board of Directors at the New York University Dentistry Alumni Association and the Executive Council of the American Academy of Orofacial Pain.

Dr. Okeson is Professor, Chairman of the Department of Oral Health Science and Director of the College's Orofacial Pain Center, which he established in 1977. Dr. Okeson has more than 240 publications in the area of occlusion, TM disorders and orofacial pain in various national and international journals. He is past president of both the American Academy of Orofacial Pain and the American Board of Orofacial Pain. He has authored two textbooks on TM disorders and orofacial pain, which have been translated into eleven different languages. Dr. Okeson is a very sought after lecturer on the subject of TMD and orofacial pain and has presented more than 1100 invited lectures on the subject of TMD and orofacial pain in all 50 states and in 54 different countries. He has received the campus wide University of Kentucky “Great Teacher Award”, the Provost’s Distinguished Service Professorship, the University of Kentucky Hall of Distinguished Alumni Award, the American Academy of Orofacial Pain’s Service Award, and the first ever “Distinguished Alumni Award” from the College of Dentistry. Dr. Okeson has also received “The International Dentist of the Year Award” from the Academy of Dentistry International. This is the highest award recognized by this Academy and was given to him in recognition of his worldwide efforts in providing education in the area of temporomandibular disorders and orofacial pain.

Dr. Heir is an internationally recognized expert on orofacial pain. He has published papers, chapters and abstracts on topics related to the field of temporomandibular disorders and orofacial pain and serves on several editorial boards of peer-reviewed journals.

Dr. Gary D. Klasser, a Fellow and Past-President of the American Academy of Orofacial Pain, obtained his dental degree from the University of Manitoba (Canada) in 1980. Over the next 22 years, he enjoyed the practice of general dentistry from both a public health and private practice perspective until he returned to graduate studies in 2002. In 2004, he completed his training and graduated from the University of Kentucky with a Certificate in Orofacial Pain. In 2005, he completed a fellowship in Oral Medicine/Oral Oncology at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). From 2005 – 2011, he was an Assistant Professor and Director of the Oral Medicine/Orofacial Pain clinic at that institution. Currently, he is a Professor in the Department of Diagnostic Sciences at Louisiana State University, School of Dentistry. Dr. Klasser has published numerous peer reviewed scientific articles, contributed many chapters to various textbooks and has been an editor for a number of books including the AAOP Guidelines. He also serves as an associate editor or as an editorial reviewer for a number of journals.