Steven Offenbacher, DDS, PhD, MMSc (deceased), is a WR Kenan Jr. Distinguished Professor, director of the Center for Oral and Systemic Diseases, and chair of the Department of Periodontology at UNC School of Dentistry. He has received some of the highest honors in dental research, including: the Norton Ross Award for Clinical Research; William J. Gies Awards for Vision, Innovation and Achievement; and the Basic Research in Periodontal Disease Award from the International Association for Dental Research. Offenbacher is past president of the American Association of Dental Research. He has conducted epidemiological and clinical research investigating the role of periodontal infections in systemic diseases. Currently, his research laboratory is exploring the cellular and molecular mechanisms of periodontal disease patrogenesis from an omics perspective.
Preventive therapies and oral hygiene education before conception and during early pregnancy may help reduce the severity of periodontal diseases and the negative effects of inflammation on pregnancy.