Students who come to Kansas City University’s (KCU) College of Dental Medicine (CDM) not only receive an education in state-of-the-art facilities with cutting-edge technology, they also learn from an exceptional team of faculty. Among them are seasoned dentists, many of whom are widely recognized for their expertise in the profession.
Before joining KCU-CDM, Sharon Gordon, DDS, MPH, PhD, professor and associate dean of academic affairs and research, held academic leadership positions at the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research of the National Institutes of Health. Board-certified in the specialty of dental public health, Dr. Gordon’s body of work has focused on mechanisms of pain, analgesia and dental anesthesia.
Most recently, Gordon served on a task force to develop new guidelines endorsed by the American Dental Association (ADA) for managing acute oral pain for adults and adolescents. The recommendations emphasize safer, more effective pain management and give clinicians evidence-based tools to provide comfortable dental treatment with far less risk than prescribing opioids.
She reflects on her experience collaborating with the task force in an opinion piece published in ADA News. Read the editorial here.
