Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Pearls XII
Pearls for the Modern Day Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon
Saturday, May 3, 2025
Reception: Friday, May 2, 2025 – 8:00pm
University Medical Center New Orleans (UMCNO)
LCMC Health Conference Center
2000 Canal Street, New Orleans, LA 70112
Map
Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Pearls XII, Pearls for the Modern Day Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon is presented in cooperation with the JKOMS Foundation and Louisiana Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Foundation. Pearls XII is a collaboration with Osteo Science Foundation.
Enjoy the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival

ABSTRACTS for PEARLS XII Symposium
Immediate, Full-arch Implant Rehabilitation—Loading Every Time
David Sylvester II, DDS
This lecture addresses patients with a terminal dentition or the edentulous patient who desires a fixed, full-arch prosthetic solution. Emphasis will be placed on immediate implant loading and provisionalization on the day of surgery. Common complications, low implant composite torque, and surgical nuances will be highlighted as the creative use of residual bone is discussed.
Does Size Matter? Short vs Long implants
Charles P. Silvia, DDS, MD
Over the years there has been some controversy regarding short implants. What is a short implant? Do short and ultrashort implants work? Do they need to be splinted? Can they be used in full arch cases? Can they help avoid costly and painful bone grafting procedures? The characteristics of the implant and an understanding of implant physics and prosthetics play a part in the success of short implants.



Course Schedule
Friday, May 2, 2025
Saturday, May 3, 2025
LSU OMFS Program Update for Alumni and Friends
- Define prosthetic and surgical requirements for successful full-arch implant rehabilitation.
- Discuss scientific literature as it relates to angled implants in full-arch, implant rehabilitation.
- Differentiate potential anatomic sites and correlating surgical techniques to facilitate primary implant fixation. These sites include the paranasal bone, midline nasal crest, palatal vault, and pterygomaxillary region.
- Recognize new technology, both instrumentation and grafting materials that are useful in managing complications.
- Identify therapies that are based on appropriate scientific evaluation as opposed to anecdotal reports.
- Organize surgical practices to incorporate the most current and scientifically proven approaches to management of implant surgical cases.
- Describe why short or ultrashort dental implants are successful or unsuccessful.
- Propose how short implants and ultrashort implants can decrease patient discomfort and case acceptance.
- Recognize what characteristics make an implant a suitable solution for those in need of short implants versus bone grafting.
Course Faculty
David Bulot, DDS, MD
A native of Louisiana. He attended Nicholls State University for his undergraduate studies. He received both his Doctorate of Dental Surgery and his Doctorate of Medicine degrees from Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans, Louisiana. He earned his Board Certification in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery in 2013. He has a special interest in teaching the LSU dental students a comprehensive approach to the dental patient and regularly teaches at LSU Dental School. He also sponsors and leads annual continuing education courses in Baton Rouge with a special interest in comprehensive implant dentistry and well as the “Oral Surgeon Advantage” for wisdom tooth extraction.
Jeffrey James, MD, DDS, MBA, FACS, FAACS
Dr. James is the Peltier Endowed Chairman and Head of the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Department at Louisiana State University (LSU) Health Science Center in New Orleans. He is a full Professor of Tenure at LSU and has over 10 years of private practice and academic surgery experience. Dr. James continued his education at the University of Oklahoma where he completed a fellowship and obtained a Certificate in Cleft and Craniofacial Surgery. He also trained at the Arnold Palmer Children’s Hospital in Orlando to expand his expertise to include cranial vault and fronto-orbital reconstruction for craniofacial dysmorphologies. Dr. James then trained at Cosmetic Surgery Affiliates furthering his competency as a facial cosmetic surgeon. Most recently, Dr. James graduated top of his class at the Hull College of Business and earned a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA). Dr. James is dual board certified. He is Board Certified in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery as well as Facial Cosmetic Surgery. He also currently serves as a Board Examiner for the American Board of Facial Cosmetic Surgery. Dr. James is a Fellow of The American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, The American College of Surgeons, and the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgeons. He has maintained membership in the American Cleft Palate–Craniofacial Association, American Academy of Cosmetic Surgeons, American College of Surgeons, American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, American Medical Association, and the American Dental Association. Dr. James is proud to have served his Country in the United States Air Force Reserves as a staff surgeon for the Air Force and Army Maxillofacial Surgery Training Program for 10 years.
Thomas Kiebach DDS MSD
A Prosthodontist born and raised in Baton Rouge. He attended Louisiana State University for his undergraduate studies and received a bachelor’s degree in biological sciences with minor concentrations in psychology and chemistry. He received his Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) degree from LSUSD in New Orleans. After dental school, he worked in private practice as a general dentist for several years before returning to LSUSD, where he completed a 3-year residency in the department of prosthodontics. He received extensive training in full mouth rehabilitation, implant prosthetics, occlusion, TMD, dentofacial esthetics, advanced treatment planning, and advanced digital dentistry. As part of his residency, he received a Master’s of dental science degree. This extensive training allows Dr. Kiebach to provide a variety of comprehensive restorative treatment options, utilizing the most advanced technology available. Dr. Kiebach has a special interest in the use of digital technology to provide enhanced diagnostic and treatment planning capabilities, create synergy between the clinical team and the laboratory, and ultimately provide superior patient experience. His passion is in simplifying the process of creating a virtual patient (digital clone) through the fusion of multiple streams of data coming from various digital technologies such as computed tomography (3D X-rays), digital photography, *3D facial scanners, intraoral scanners, 4D jaw motion tracking, digital CAD design software, and 3D printers. Armed with the superior diagnostic data achieved with the virtual patient creation, our interdisciplinary team of specialists can create customized surgical and prosthetic treatments in a fraction of the time.
Steven Nelson, DDS, MD
An oral and maxillofacial surgeon who was raised in Baton Rouge. He attended Louisiana State University for his undergraduate studies and received a bachelor’s degree in biological sciences. He received his Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) degree from Louisiana State University School of Dentistry in New Orleans, Louisiana. In addition to graduating at the top of his dental school class, he was bestowed the Horace Wells Excellence in Dental Anesthesia Award, and the Excellence in Implant Dentistry Award. He was also inducted into the C. Edmund Kells and OKU Dental Honor Societies. Dr. Nelson has a special interest in orthognathic surgery, bone grafting, soft tissue grafting, and dental implant surgery. Along with his well-trained office staff, he can provide his patients with the most updated and accurate methods of care using in-office CT scans and the latest digital equipment.
Charles P. Silvia Jr. DDS, MD
UCLA BS in Kinesiology/Physiology in 1983. UCSF School of Dentistry, DDS in 1987. LSU New Orleans, Residency in OMS in 1991. LSU School of Medicine, MD in 1994. Dr. Silvia has been in private practice as an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon since 1994. He started placing Bicon Dental Implants 30 years ago and for the past 20 plus years have been placing short and ultrashort dental implants.. In the beginning an 8 mm implant was considered short but 5 mm and 6 mm implants have become routine in my practice. These implants have become an excellent alternative to extensive bone grafting and other adjunctive procedures resulting in happy patients and referring dentists. Lastly, patient case acceptance is higher when short and ultrashort implants are utilized resulting in a decrease in cost, pain and potential complications.
David Sylvester II, DDS
Dr. Sylvester earned his certificate in Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery from the University of Oklahoma and is a diplomate of the American Board of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery. He is in private practice and volunteers as an Assistant Clinical Professor at the University of Oklahoma. To date, Dr. Sylvester has performed more than 4000 arches of full-arch implant rehabilitation. More than 99% of these cases are prosthetically loaded on the day of surgery.

Continuing Education Credits
Up to 6.0 CDE and CME credits will be provided for full attendance at this meeting.
Accreditation and Designation Statements • Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Pearls XII.
This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of PeerPoint Medical Education Institute and the Osteo Science Foundation.
PeerPoint Medical Education Institute is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
PeerPoint Medical Education Institute designates the live format for this educational activity for a maximum of 6.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Additional Notes
This activity is presented for educational purposes only. Participants are expected to use their own expertise and judgment while engaged in the practice of oral and maxillofacial surgery. Attendees should check specific details such as drug doses, contraindications, etc., in standard sources prior to clinical application. The content of presentations is provided solely by presenters who have been selected because of their recognized expertise.
The OMS Pearls Conference is presented and managed by the Jack Kent Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Foundation. The express purpose of this conference is to provide continuing education in the field of oral and maxillofacial surgery for those in attendance. The statements, ideas, and opinions expressed in this conference are those of the individual participants and in no way should reflect the statements, ideas, and opinions of any specialty certifying organization; any OMS professional or alumni organization; LSU Health New Orleans School of Dentistry; LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans and Shreveport; the LSU Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery; or others involved in this activity.