Oral surgeons bite at offshore MD degree

Most patients assume anyone calling themselves MD has a medical license, but that's not true with some oral surgeons who are using the designation.

By Myrle Croasdale, AMNews staff. Oct. 18, 2004. - AAOMS responds

The Kansas Court of Appeals told Steven Thomas, DDS, in September to stop using MD in his practice. The ruling upheld an earlier decision from the Kansas State Board of Healing Arts.

Dr. Thomas is one of several oral surgeons who have earned medical degrees, primarily from the University of Health Sciences Antigua, and who have included these academic degrees in their titles.

Four of the five board members of the American College of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeons, of which Dr. Thomas is president-elect, use the MD title. None hold medical licenses.

Many licensed physicians believe that this practice misleads the public and raises concerns about patient safety.

Steven Pearlman, MD, a member of the American Academy of Otolaryngology -- Head and Neck Surgery and president of the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, said this is yet another example of oral surgeons seeking to work beyond their scope.

"This is parallel to what happened in California," where oral surgeons recently tried and failed to win authority to perform elective cosmetic surgery of the head and neck, Dr. Pearlman said.

"If you are hanging MD on your shingle and you're not licensed, that's wrong," he said. "That's absolutely misleading the public. If these oral surgeons want to do this, they should go through the same pathway as U.S. [medical] doctors."

Dr. Thomas would only respond to AMNews via e-mail. "I practiced oral and maxillofacial surgery for 13 years before graduating from medical school, and my practice has not changed as a result of the additional degree," he wrote. "Nor have I gained any 'competitive advantage' as a result of the degree. It simply expanded the extent of my knowledge and made me a better oral surgeon. I think patients have a right to that information, and the court should not prohibit me from sharing it."