AO’s 2026 Distinguished Award Recipients Announced
The Academy of Osseointegration is proud to announce the recipients of the 2026 Distinguished Awards have been selected and approved by AO’s Board of Directors. Four Distinguished Awards were recently established to honor individuals whose dedication, leadership and contributions have had a meaningful and lasting impact on Academy members.
Through these awards, the Academy recognizes AO members who exemplify a commitment to advancing knowledge, elevating standards of care and supporting
the continued growth of the profession. Recipients of this year’s Distinguished Awards include Drs. Lyndon Cooper – Distinguished Educator, Hom-Lay Wang – Distinguished Researcher, Istvan Urban – Distinguished Speaker and Dennis Tarnow – Master Clinician.
These awards are made possible through the generous support of our corporate partners including: BioHorizons (Master Clinician), HiOssen (Distinguished Speaker), Nobel Biocare (Distinguished Research) and Straumann (Distinguished Educator).
Dr. Lyndon Cooper
Dr. Hom-Lay Wang
Dr. Istvan Urban
Dr. Dennis Tarnow
The Academy of Osseointegration congratulates this year’s recipients and will formally recognize them at this year’s Award Ceremony from 1:30 – 2:15 pm, Saturday, March 7th in Washington DC. We encourage all members to attend this event and support these individuals – along with numerous other colleagues who are being honored for their accomplishments.
Additional information on the Distinguished Awards, along with instructions on how to nominate a member who has made a lasting impression in your education, can be found at osseo.org/distinguished-awards-info. Members who nominated individuals for this year’s awards are encouraged to nominate them again – or another member – for consideration in 2027.
