Mark Piper
DMD, MD
Dr. Piper is a graduate of Harvard College and received his dental degree magna cum laude from Harvard School of Dental Medicine. He was the Harvard Gold Medal Award recipient of his graduating class and was inducted into the Harvard Chapter of Omicron Kappa Upsilon. Dr. Piper subsequently received his MD from Vanderbilt Medical School, where he completed residencies in general surgery and oral and maxillofacial surgery. He was an emergency room physician in Tennessee before moving to St. Petersburg, Florida, to establish the Piper Clinic. His practice was limited to the specialized care of patients with temporomandibular joint internal derangements and facial pain. In 1984, he was one of twelve founding fathers of the American Society of TMJ Surgeons. Dr. Piper retired from practice in 2022, but he remains active in research and publishing.
Dr. Piper has an extensive research and teaching background. He received the First Place Hatton Award from the IADR for his original research on the role of myoepithelial cells in wound healing and fetal palatal shelf elevation. His clinical research interests have included the diagnosis and management of facial Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, osteochondral growth deficiency of human mandibular condyles, and TMJ degenerative conditions. He is credited with several major advancements in the field of TMD including the Piper Classification of TMJ disorders, development of TMJ Doppler Auscultation, TMJ microsurgery, stealth-assisted skull base surgery, and autologous adipose reconstructive grafting of damaged joints. He has special expertise in tracking occlusal disturbances in patients with TMD, and he has been instrumental in developing methods of occlusal correction through temporomandibular reconstruction. Dr. Piper is a Lifetime Achievement Awardee of both the Dawson Academy and the American Equilibration Society.