Dr. Ricardo Padilla

Dr. Ricardo Padilla is the Kaneda Distinguished Associate Professor of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology at the UNC School of Dentistry.  He has been the Residency Director of the Oral Pathology Program since 2006, and the Course Director of Undergraduate, Graduate, and CE courses in embryology, histology, and pathology at UNC.  He has been at UNC practicing oral pathology for 19 years.  He is a Diplomate of the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, a Fellow of the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, past Chairman of the Fellowship Examination of the AAOMP, and has held several leadership positions in academics.  His research interests include novel treatments for oral mucosa diseases, bone tissue engineering, pedagogical strategies in inter professional education, histopathologic features of tumors of the oral mucosa, jaws, and salivary gland, and recently has collaborated in the team that mapped the SARS-CoV2 receptors in the oral mucosa using specimens from the UNC Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology Biopsy Service. He completed his dental training in Guatemala, his oral pathology residency at the University of Florida, and his ENT fellowship at the University of Texas.