Experts in Orofacial Pain Host Exchange Student

Dr. Maria F. Hernandez and Dr. Gary Heir Dr. Maria F. Hernandez and Dr. Gary Heir

In the U.S., the study and treatment of orofacial pain may be more advanced than it is in other countries, but it’s still a field that’s little known to the public.

Dr. Maria F. Hernandez, a visiting postdoctoral student from Spain, says specialists there know that educating patients comes with the territory.

“It’s difficult because you have to teach patients that you can do something for them,’’ said Hernandez, who is studying pain at the Universidad San Pablo-CEU in Madrid She arrived last month at RSDM as part of a budding exchange program initiated by Dr. Gary Heir, director of the Division of Temporomandibular Disorders and Orofacial Pain Department of Diagnostic Sciences.

Each year, Heir travels to Spain to lecture at the Universidad San Pablo, at the invitation of Dr. Jose de la Hoz, head of the Orofacial Pain program there. Although many foreign students have come to Newark to observe RSDM orofacial pain experts, Hernandez’s visit marks the start of a formal exchange program with the department.

“We hope to see a lot more,’’ says Heir.

The study of chronic pain has been a rapidly growing specialty worldwide, and RSDM is a leader in the field. But many patients don’t realize that oral healthcare providers like Heir can play a significant role in diagnosing and treating chronic headaches and other problems.

“They don’t know the role of dentists in orofacial pain,’’ says Heir. “They go to a neurologist and other kinds of specialists. But the medical field doesn’t always pick up on the patient who falls between medicine and dentistry,’’ he adds.

Since she came to RSDM, Hernandez, who has a masters degree in Orthodontics, has attended lectures and grand rounds, observed in the clinics and worked with patients in the orthodontics department. “I’m learning so much,’’ she says. “Here, you have a very developed faculty, strong specialties and a very good clinic.’’