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A Giant Leap for Brazil

The new president of IADR, Dr. Maria Fidela de Lima Navarro, at the previous congress of the organization in Miami. (Photo: Jan Agostaro)
Javier M. de Pisón / Editor-in-Chief, Dental Tribune Latin America

Javier M. de Pisón / Editor-in-Chief, Dental Tribune Latin America

mar. 22 junio 2010

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The election of Dr. Maria Fidela de Lima Navarro, Dean of the Bauru Dental School (FOB-Bauru) at the University of São Paulo, as president of the International Association for Dental Research (IADR) is a great recognition of the high level of dental research being conducted in Brazil. In addition to taking over the organization at the upcoming IADR General Session in Barcelona, Spain, Brazil will be the venue of the 2010 international congress of FDI and of the 2012 IADR General Session, which shows the stature it has finally achieved. Dr. Maria Fidela de Lima explains in this interview the significance of her election as president of the largest dental research organization in the world.

You are the first Latin American researcher to be elected as IADR President. How did you reach this position?
The International Association for Dental Research (IADR) was established in December 1920 by a group of 25 scientists under the leadership of a biochemist, William J. Gies. Its first president was James Leon Williams. He was followed by 86 presidents, all from developed countries, most of them from United States, which is where more than half of its members come from. I'll be the 87th president and the first from a developing country. I am very happy with this distinction, but aware of the enormous responsibility I have to preside over this international association and to represent all of its members. My motto as IADR President is "Reducing Disparities and Improving the Quality of Dental Research Worldwide."
Before being appointed as president of IADR, I had worked in different areas of the association. I was president of the Brazilian Division in 1994-95, Member-at-Large of the Board in 1995-98, part of the Membership & Recruitment Committee, and Chair of the Regional Development Program.
In these diverse activities I got to know the association and relate to colleagues from around the world. I believe this experience, coupled with the fact that there was no American candidate in the race, and also the prospects of the 2012 IADR General Session in Rio de Janeiro, were instrumental in my election.

What's the reason for the record number of abstracts submitted to the Barcelona congress?
First, (current IADR President) by Prof. David Williams, who urged all IADR members to face the challenges of the global financial crisis and actively participate in IADR meetings. Also, to the great program put together by IADR's Scientific Groups and Network Officers, and by the Organizing Committee, which certainly motivated members to submit works. The General Session is preceded on July 13th by a full-day symposium on the topic "Global Oral Health Inequalities: the Research Agenda." Then on July 14 - 17, the 88th General Session of IADR and the 5th General Session of the Pan European Region of IADR will present the following program: 32 symposia with specific topics, 5 Workshops, 29 Lunch & Learning presentations, 20 keynote presentations, oral presentations, poster sessions with more than 5,000 works selected, and also three distinguished scientists, Francisco Fernandes-Aviles, Thomas Lehner and Nobel Prize winner Harald zur Hausen.
Also, the city of Barcelona is the second most visited city in Europe, and therefore also an important attraction.
Finally, some colleagues have expressed that will make it to the Opening Session to honor me, which is when I'll give the President's speech. In fact, Brazil is the country that has submitted the largest number of abstracts for this congress.

What abstracts are the most interesting?
Over 5,500 abstracts have been submitted covering all areas of dentistry, from basic research to applied research. They were reviewed and selected by the Scientific Groups and Network Officers of IADR, which conducted a thorough and important work for our association. The selected papers address recent advances in basic studies of molecular biology, tissue engineering, bioactive materials, restorative materials with suitable properties for use in the oral cavity, event clinical, randomized controlled studies on different diseases, the performance of different restorative techniques, and the influence of social determinants on health disparities in the world's population.
Studies in the field of dentistry are no longer restricted to the oral cavity, but are being integrated in patient's general health. In addition, participants interact with presenters so that all abstracts submitted arise much interest.

What is the main mission of IADR?
To improve, through research, the oral health status of the population worldwide. This has been achieved, but there are still many disparities in different countries and even within countries, and these disparities will be highlighted at the symposium on June 13th entitled "Global Oral Health Inequalities: the Research Agenda." Subsequently we intend to develop actions, together with partner organizations and governments, so evidence-based research is implemented and improves the oral health of people around the world.

What are the highlights of the General Session in Barcelona?
Besides the great scientific program, the presentations of abstracts, and the oral and poster presentations that will occur throughout the congress. In addition, there are also working meetings of scientific groups and social gatherings. Throughout the event, participants have the opportunity to discuss the results of their research with colleagues, and partnerships to plan and implement joint projects.

Why was Barcelona chosen as venue for the General Session?
The IADR involves the various regions of the world in the annual General Session so members of different countries can benefit from the contact with distinguished researchers. IADR Divisions submit their proposals, highlighting the existing infrastructure of a convention center suitable to host an event of this size, and tourist attractions of the venue. Applications are reviewed by the board and finally approved by the IADR Board of Directors. Barcelona was chosen because it met the necessary conditions and also because the most recent meetings in the region were in Nice in 1998 and Gothenburg in 2003.

How important is the Journal of Dental Research?
The Journal of Dental Research (JDR), which publishes original advanced research, has been ranked for many years as the journal with the largest impact in the dental field. This means that papers published are the most cited by the scientific community. Today the journal is also available online free for members, which is a major reason for researchers to join the IADR.

Is it true that Bauru Dental School is considered the third best in the world?
There is no official information on this, but as a graduate, a former head of the school and a witness to the highly trained human resources of FOP Bauru, I feel very proud.
The Bauru Dental School at the University of São Paulo has operated since 1962. Since its inception, it has become a distinguished teaching and research school in the dental field. The FOB integrated dental teaching with the activities of the Hospital for Rehabilitation of Craniofacial Anomalies, and courses in speech therapy, for which it has become a reference center for national and international treatment and the research conducted in these areas also. Due to its prestige, it is sought for undergraduate and postgraduate students, master's degree and doctoral candidates in Brazil and abroad. It aims to train professionals with a generalist view, with a perception of Brazilian dental health care, but without losing focus of the international character of dentistry as a science.
Up to now, more than 2,000 dentists, 500 speech therapists, 1,140 masters and 623 Ph D's have graduated from FOB. Its scientific output is published in important national and international journals, including our own Journal of Applied Oral Science, which is indexed in major acadmic databases such as ISI Web of Knowledge (Science Citation Index Expanded) and Medline/PubMed. The high level of teaching and research of FOB is due to the rutine exchanges with international reseach centers, which provide international visibility. That's why and the Bauru Dental School is considered one of the best in the world.

What type of research being done at the FOB?
FOB conducts original in vitro and clinical research. These is possible thanks to the commitment of teachers and students at undergraduate and postgraduate level, and its results are widely disseminated to the scientific and professional communities. We conduct trials on biological, epidemiological, development of materials and techniques, both in the field of dentistry as of speech pathology, with the basic principle of integrating teaching and research. The FOB has and adequate reseach infrastructure but in addition it's very close to important labs such as the Center of Electron Microscopy, and the Center for Integrated Research and Biomaterials.

How would you rate research in Brazil?
Brazil is in a very privileged position in international research, ranking in 13th place in the world. At the VII International Meeting of Editors and Authors of Scientific Journals of Dentistry in Rio de Janeiro I had the opportunity to show very interesting data about Brazil.
The increase in dental research in Brazil is mainly due to four factors:
1) The creation of the Brazilian Division of IADR (1994), which facilitated the exchange between Brazilian and international researchers
2) The enactment of the Law of Directives and Bases of National Education (1996), which established a deadline of eight years for universities to have at least one third of its teachers with master's or Ph D's, and also at least a third dedicated to teaching and research
3) The Improvement of Personnel of Superior Level (CAPES), with a stricter criteria for post-graduation, and,
4) A significant increase in government investment in science, technology and innovation.
Besides these four main factors, dentistry has benefited from meetings between author and editors, who have provided important subsidies for authors to submit Brazilian research papers to international journals. As a result, in some international journals Brazil is the country with more papers submited and accepted for publication.
In addition, Brazil also has the Journal of Applied Oral Science, a respected journal which I mentioned before.

What are your priorities as president of IADR?
I'll be IADR president from mid-July 2010 to mid-March 2011, and then immediate past president until June 2012, at the General Session in Rio de Janeiro. My motto is to reduce inequities and improve the quality of dental research worldwide. The collaboration between different research groups is one way to achieve this, but we need to involve government leaders for significant changes occur. I also intend to visit the various regions of the IADR, participate in local meetings, make myself available, and help as much as I can.

Why was Brazil chosen for the 2012 IADR General Session?
Brazil will be the host country to the 90th Annual Session and Exhibition of the IADR, which will take place June 20-23 in Rio de Janeiro. It followed the same parameters as for choosing Barcelona. But I believe that there is also some international curiosity about Brazil because of the way it solved its economic crisis, the fact that has shown outstanding economic growth, and specifically in the dental area, by the sheer amount of papers being published by Brazilian researchers, and the high-level performance of colleagues who conduct joint research abroad. Another relevant aspect is the tourist attractions of Brazil, such as the Amazon, the Pantanal lakes, the Iguassu Falls, our beaches and, especially, the city that will host the event, Rio de Janeiro, rightly known as the Marvelous City.

What are the expectations for growth in the Latin American section of IADR?
The IADR is organized into five Regions. The Latin American region comprises the following divisions: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Peru and Venezuela, and the following Sections: Costa Rica, Ecuador, Panama and Uruguay. The Latin American region is the fastest growing region in IADR, and still has great potential for much more growth. Only in Brazil there are more than 3,000 members of the Brazilian Society for Dental Research and 1,000 members of the IADR. The amount of members has almost tripled in the last 10 years. In the same period others regions grew at a smaller pace. I believe that the General Session in Brazil will excite the Latin American region and the number of members will grow even more.

Do you think Brazil has achieved international recognition with the choice of Bahia as venue for FDI World Dental Congress in 2010?
The IADR and FDI World Dental Federation are long-standing partners that work together to improve the oral health of the population throughout the world, and, therefore, are entities of great prestige. The field of action of IADR is to advance research and scientific knowledge, while FDI's focuses is improving and constant updating of dental professionals, which apply the knowledge and evidence of scientific research. These two entities, together with others such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and International Federation of Dental Educators and Associations (IFDEA) have performed an important work for the benefit of oral and general health of people around the world.
Thus, when a city is chosen to host the annual event of FDI, there is an implicit recognition of its importance and positive actions in improving the oral health of the people around the world.

Resources
• IADR: www.iadr.org
• FOB-Bauru: www.fob.usp.br
 

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