NuSmile Ltd. announced that Dr. Carolyn Primus, leader of its research efforts in bioceramic materials, was a recent winner of the 2016 Dr. Edward B. Shils Award. Dr. Primus was the founder and CEO of advanced mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) manufacturer Avalon Biomed Inc., substantially all of whose assets were recently acquired by NuSmile.
The Dr. Edward B. Shils Award is given to companies, people and organizations that have made an impact on the dental community and oral health. The award is presented by the Dr. Edward B. Shils Entrepreneurial Fund, a nonprofit organization dedicated to innovative leadership in health care. The organization is named after the late Dr. Edward B. Shils, who was the executive director of the Dental Manufacturers of America and the Dental Dealers of America for almost 50 years.
The board of directors presented Dr. Primus with the award based on her “innovation and development of many products for fixed prosthodontics, orthodontics and endodontics to enhance dental procedures and advance the dental profession.”
Dr. Primus has made a profound impact on dentistry through her significant advancements with mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA), which is used in vital pulp therapy and endodontics. Dr. Primus has three patents in this area that have enabled her to invent an MTA product that is easier to use. The company she founded, Avalon Biomed, has also made this bioactive pulp treatment and endodontic treatment more affordable for clinicians so that it can be used with patients for whom treatment with an MTA might not be financially viable. With Avalon Biomed now a part of NuSmile, Dr. Primus is able to continue her bioactive material research that was originally supported by an NIH SBIR grant.
Dr. Primus stated, “I am delighted and honored to receive the Shils Award. Throughout my dental career, inventing useful biomaterials has remained at the forefront of my goals. The Dr. Edward B. Shils Entrepreneurial Fund has provided me further inspiration to continue to innovate for better dental treatments as part of the NuSmile team.”
More information on the products pioneered by Dr. Primus and Avalon Biomed can be found at avalonbiomed.com.
