Dr. Raphael de Souza and his team of co-investigators were awarded a $25,000 grant from the Drummond Foundation for their study connecting dentistry with cognitive research, entitled, 鈥淏etter Oral Health for a Healthy Cognition: Investigation of a New Pathway.鈥� Dr. de Souza鈥檚 project brings together the efforts of five other Faculty of Dentistry researchers: Dr. Belinda Nicolau, Dr. Jocelyne Feine, Dr. Faleh Tamimi, Dr. Sreenath Madathil, and Dr. Ricardo Alchini,聽in addition to Concordia University Professor of Psychology, Dr. Linda Booij.
Investigating the relation between poor oral health and higher risk of neurological diseases, including early dementia and Alzheimer鈥檚, the research project will bring together data from 30,000 participants in the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA). Ultimately, the knowledge gained in this study will help identify new ways of preventing or slow the progress of neurological diseases associated with aging, and help dentists understand their role in this process.