Shaping the Future of Oral Health Research at Columbia University College of Dental Medicine

In her inaugural lecture, “The Oral Health Profession Today: Big Challenges and Bigger Opportunities,” part of the Dean’s Distinguished Lecture Series, Building Bridges for Oral Health Research, Dr. Rena D’Souza, an internationally recognized clinician-scientist and former director of the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, opened with a clear message: dentistry has undergone significant transformation and is now entering another pivotal phase.

D’Souza situated dentistry within a sweeping historical arc. The profession, she noted, began not as a scientific discipline but as a trade, practiced by barbers and blacksmiths long before it entered the university. That shift did not happen by chance. It emerged through decades of research and a growing understanding of the connection between oral health and overall health. In that sense, dentistry has already completed a fundamental transition from a craft to a science-driven health profession.

Today, D’Souza argued that the field stands at the threshold of another transformation. Advances in biomedical research, emerging technologies, and changing expectations for health care are reshaping what is possible in oral health science. The challenge now is to move from generating new knowledge to ensuring that it leads to real improvements in clinical care.

That earlier transformation was shaped in part at Columbia University. In the early twentieth century, William J. Gies, a biochemistry professor, helped transform dental education by advancing the idea that dentistry should be grounded in science and situated within the broader medical and research environment of the university. His work helped establish the Columbia University College of Dental Medicine (CDM) as part of the broader health sciences campus, creating a model designed to integrate education, research, and clinical training.

That model remains central to CDM today. From the outset, CDM was structured to embody the kind of scientific and medical integration the field has long sought. Dental students train alongside medical students early in their education, reinforcing the idea that oral health is part of overall health. This structure creates the possibility of extending that integration beyond the classroom into research and clinical practice.

It is this moment of transition that makes CDM, in D’Souza’s view, uniquely positioned to lead.

“Columbia has extraordinary strengths,” she said, pointing to the talent of its students, supported by strong leadership and a long-standing commitment to interdisciplinary education.

A Field Under Strain

Yet that opportunity is matched by a set of unresolved challenges. Despite significant scientific progress, the integration of oral health into the broader health care system remains incomplete. One dimension of that gap is structural, reflected in how care is organized and delivered.

“Dentistry is not viewed as part of the medical profession, and it really should be,” she said. “If you look at health care and insurance, it seems to cover everything but the tissues in the head, nothing for vision, nothing for hearing, certainly nothing for dental. It’s like the head is severed from the rest of the body.”

A second challenge is institutional. D’Souza described the current moment as one of both expansion and uncertainty. The system supporting academic dentistry is under increasing strain. The number of dental schools has expanded, new models of care such as dental support organizations (DSOs) are reshaping the profession, and institutions are under pressure to balance clinical demands with research and education.

She pointed to clinical training as one area where this tension is especially visible. Research opportunities within residency programs remain limited, making it more difficult to sustain a pipeline of clinician-scientists that offer the best for the profession.

“We know so much,” she said, “but we are not always able to translate that knowledge into patient-centered solutions.”

These pressures are compounded by broader changes in the national research landscape, particularly shifts in priorities at the National Institutes of Health toward work that demonstrates measurable impact on health outcomes. This includes a growing emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration and the use of real-world data. At the same time, competition for funding has intensified, making it more difficult—especially for early-career investigators—to establish and sustain research programs. Applying research in clinical settings remains a challenge within this environment, where expectations for demonstrated impact continue to rise.

Taken together, these pressures make it more difficult not only to conduct research, but also to sustain the kind of research enterprise the field depends on.

New Possibilities in Science

Even as these pressures persist, the scientific landscape is changing in ways that expand what is possible. Advances in genomics, microbiome research, and precision medicine are enabling researchers to move beyond one-size-fits-all approaches toward more individualized care. Digital technologies—from wearable devices to real-world data platforms—are transforming how health behaviors are monitored and how data is analyzed.

These developments are driving a more holistic, “whole-person” model of health, one that recognizes the interplay of biological, behavioral, environmental, and social factors. Within this framework, oral health emerges as a critical point of connection.

The mouth, D’Souza noted, is both a site of disease and a window into systemic health, reflecting broader conditions ranging from chronic inflammation to cancer and metabolic disorders. Oral diseases themselves remain among the most prevalent conditions globally, affecting billions of people and carrying significant economic and social costs.

Addressing major public health challenges—from chronic disease to health disparities—will require integrating oral health into the broader health care ecosystem.

That work depends not only on changes in care, but also on how research is directed and supported.

Shaping What Comes Next

At CDM, that work is taking shape under D’Souza’s leadership through the Dean’s Distinguished Lecture Series, Building Bridges for Oral Health Research. The series is designed to guide CDM’s future research priorities. It brings high-impact speakers to campus to share work at the frontiers of science while also highlighting the research and scholarship already underway among CDM faculty and students.

“It’s a two-way thing, a bidirectional influence,” D’Souza said. “I think it’s a great opportunity to signal intellectual direction and culture.”

D’Souza envisions the series as a way to spark new collaborations and generate ideas that can grow into future grant-supported research. By exposing the community to emerging science across oral and systemic health, the series emphasizes translational research and interdisciplinary discovery, encouraging connections that extend beyond traditional boundaries.

She also sees the series as an opportunity to raise the CDM’s visibility within the broader scientific community and enhance its reputation as a leader in education and discovery.

Developing Researchers

In her role as a visiting professor at CDM, D’Souza will also lead a collaborative research project that gives students the opportunity to engage directly with visiting experts. Working in small teams, students will focus on developing clinical research methodology, which D’Souza described as “absolutely needed” in the graduate curriculum.

“They’ll look at what’s currently known, what is not known, and how best to fill the gaps,” D’Souza explained. The process gives students experience in framing research questions, designing and randomizing studies, and thinking critically about how discovery translates into practice. Students will present a solution-oriented proposal and participate in an open panel discussion.

This year’s project focuses on graduate training, particularly clinical residency programs. While predoctoral education has evolved significantly, D’Souza explained that residency training represents a key area of opportunity, especially in expanding patient-centered research and strengthening research methodology within clinical settings.

Beyond the student experience, D’Souza is also working closely with tenure-track faculty to help them navigate the increasingly competitive research landscape. Drawing on her experience leading national research programs, she aims to help faculty build sustainable research portfolios and compete effectively for funding.

“We have to make sure that researchers who are committed to pursuing research succeed,” she said, emphasizing the challenges early-career investigators face in securing support from agencies such as the National Institutes of Health.

For D’Souza, mentoring is not separate from advancing science. It is central to it. “The joy of discovery has always been equally balanced with the tremendous elation I feel when I see mentees succeed,” she said.

She sees this work as closely aligned with the broader goals of the Dean’s Distinguished Lecture Series and the direction of CDM itself. “I want them to feel excited about the time we live in, the place they are,” she said, “to feel that they are an important, unique part of the solution.”

Together, these efforts reflect a broader aim: to ensure that the next generation of researchers and clinicians is equipped not only to advance knowledge, but also to translate it into meaningful improvements in health.