As of July 1, 2014, Rolf “Buzz” Behrents, DDS, MS, PhD, has taken over as Editor-in-Chief of the American Journal of Orthodontics & Dentofacial Orthopedics (AJO-DO). He replaces Vincent G. Kokich, DDS, MSD, who passed away suddenly last July.
Behrents has served as Editor Designate for the past 6 months, working with David L. Turpin, DDS, MSD, who was serving as interim editor-in-chief. He is the Lysle E. Johnston, Jr, Professor of Orthodontics and director of the orthodontic program at the Center for Advanced Dental Education (CADE) at Saint Louis University (SLU). Behrents was also executive director of the SLU CADE from 2003 until 2011.
Behrents joined Saint Louis University after serving as professor and chairman of the Department of Orthodontics at Baylor College of Dentistry from 1998 to 2003. He previously was a faculty member and a professor and chairman of the Department of Orthodontics at the University of Tennessee College of Dentistry. He is also a past faculty member and director of the orthodontic program at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland.
Behrents received a bachelor of arts degree from St Olaf College in Minnesota; completed his dental training at Meharry Medical College in Nashville; and received his orthodontic training and master of science degree from Case Western Reserve University in 1975. He later received a PhD degree from the University of Michigan for work conducted at the university’s Center for Human Growth and Development. In 2001, Behrents was awarded an honorary doctoral degree by the University of Athens in Greece.
A past guest editor and referee for the AJO-DO, Behrents’ editorial experience includes work as an editorial board member for the Angle Orthodontist and as a referee for the World Journal of Orthodontics, The Journal of Orthodontics (United Kingdom), Journal of Dental Research, Quintessence International, Medical Principles and Practice (Kuwait), and Mondo Ortodontico (Brazil).
An active researcher and editorial contributor to numerous books, Behrents is the author of Growth of the Aging Craniofacial Skeleton. Material from this monograph is included in the textbook Contemporary Orthodontics by Dr William Proffit and in additional textbooks published in several languages. Behrents has published more than 70 articles in refereed journals including the AJO-DO, the Angle Orthodontist, the Journal of General Dentistry, the Annals of Human Biology, and others. He has been a research associate of the Bolton-Brush Growth Study Center of Case Western Reserve University since 1984.
Behrents has lectured extensively in the United States and abroad. He gave the Jacob Salzmann Lecture at the 1992 AAO Annual Session in St Louis and the John Valentine Mershon Lecture at the 2008 AAO Annual Session in Denver.
Behrents was the doctors’ scientific program co-chairman of three AAO Annual Sessions: 1998 (Dallas), 2006 (Las Vegas), and 2011 (Chicago). He is a past president of the Tennessee Association of Orthodontists; served on the AAO Task Force on Faculty Recruitment and Retention; and was a judge for the 2012 AJO-DO David L. Turpin Award for Evidence-Based Research. Behrents has been co-director of GORP (the annual Graduate Orthodontic Residents Program meeting) since 1999.
Among the many awards that Behrents has received are the 2011 Joseph Jarabak International Teaching and Research Award from the AAO Foundation. Behrents also received the AAOF Eugene and Pauline Blair Distinguished Service Award in 2007. In 2003, he was elected chair emeritus of the AAOF Planning and Review Committee.
