The Faculty of Dentistry’s Area of Periodontology, headed by full professor José Nart, was recently awarded the André Schroeder Prize from the ITI (International Team for Implantology) Foundation, one of the most prestigious international distinctions in dentistry and implantology. The award ceremony took place on 16 May in Turkey, during the annual ITI Congress.

The prize was awarded for the research article “Effects of Smoking on Macrophage Polarization in Peri-Implantitis Lesions”, published in the journal Clinical Oral Implants Research (COIR).

The study analyses the impact of smoking on the inflammatory response in peri-implantitis lesions, offering new evidence that tobacco use can exacerbate tissue destruction and compromise the prognosis of dental implants.

The project was led by teaching staff member and researcher Dr Alberto Monje, together with principal co-authors Ettore Amerio and Francesco Sparano, both former students of the Faculty of Dentistry’s University Master’s Degree in Periodontology and Implant Dentistry. Ettore Amerio is also a PhD candidate at the Faculty under the supervision of Dr José Nart, who commended Ettore Amerio and Francesco Sparano for their dedication and excellent work in conducting this research.

The authors underscored the importance of this distinction: “It is a great honour, both due to the prize’s international prestige and because it is the result of work developed within the master’s programme and the Faculty’s Area of Periodontology.”

This recognition also marks a milestone for Spanish research, as it is only the second time since its creation that a research group from Spain has received this prize.