Research article leads to award for orthodontic alumnus

When Dr. Peter Truong completed the graduate orthodontic program in 2014, he might not have predicted his thesis research would glean recognition several years in the future. His study, “Effect of Longitudinal Flutes on Miniscrew Implant Stability and 3-Dimensional Bone Formation,” was eventually published in the American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics in 2016, and not long after, was judged as the highest-rated experimental research article published in the journal that year.

On April 23, during the annual meeting of the publication’s editorial board, the Wayne G. Watson Award for Biologic or Experimental Research was presented honoring Truong’s work and that of collaborator Dr. Peter Buschang, Regents professor and director of orthodontic research. Several Texas A&M College of Dentistry faculty members in orthodontics and restorative sciences also contributed to the article, which is the third from the College of Dentistry in the past three years to be honored with the Watson Award. In 2016, Dr. Aaron Swapp ’12 received the honor, and in 2015, an article by Dr. Lauren Carney ’12 earned the recognition.