Literally every surgeon I've talked to claims they pioneered piezosurgery...
There indeed can be a NUMBER of pioneers or INNOVATORS who come up with techniques used with a DEVICE.
I did some research on this to distinguish between the 'inventor' and the 'pioneers'/innovators.
There are MANY pioneers/innovators, Alfaro is indeed one of them. The inventor is the one who gets the PATENT on the device. Although the inventor would also be a pioneer. Alfaro isn't listed as the patent holder/inventor. Assignee: Piezosurgery, Inc.
Inventors: Tomaso Vercellotti, Fernando Bianchetti, Domenico Vercellotti
I referred to the following article: Piezosurgery in implant dentistry
https://www.dovepress.com/piezosurgery-in-implant-dentistry-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-CCIDE#r_ref66 and looked for the KEY pieces of info within it.
" In 2001, the Piezosurgery® was introduced, a tool that combines the ultrasound and the piezo effect. 9" That tells me that 'Piesosurgery' is actually a TRADE MARK.
Then I go down to the credits in the bibliography and look for number 9. It lists:
9 Vercellotti T, Crovace A, Palermo A, Molfetta A. The piezoelectric osteotomy in orthopedics: clinical and histological evaluations (pilot study in animals). Mediterranean J Surg Med. 2001;9:89–95.
That tells me one of those names is likely to be the Inventor. Knowing that Piezosurgery® is a TRADEMARK and INVENTORS are usually assigned by a company to invent something, I find that it's owned by 'Piezosurgery INC' a corporation which is company owned by/associated with a company named 'mectron'.
After that, I find the PATENT on it and hence the INVENTORS:
Surgical device for bone surgery
Patent number: 8002783
Abstract: A surgical device (1) for bone surgery including a body (2) able to be gripped by the user and a tip (3) mounted at the head of the body and set in vibration at a modulated ultrasonic frequency to operate on bone tissue, the surgical device (1) being particularly suitable for oral surgical procedures such as bone sampling, excision of cysts, third molar extraction, preparation of alveolar sites, creation of an opening into the maxillary sinus (Caldwell Luc), elevation of the maxillary sinus by the crestal route and orthopedic and neurosurgical procedures such as osteoplasty, ostectomy and osteotomy.
Type: Grant
Filed: December 12, 2007
Date of Patent: August 23, 2011
Assignee: Piezosurgery, Inc.
Inventors: Tomaso Vercellotti, Fernando Bianchetti, Domenico Vercellotti
So, Alfaro isn't actually the 'inventor' of the device with TRADEMARK; Piezosurgery®
Perhaps he used the term loosely, something got lost in the translation or meant to say he was the INNOVATOR of a TECHNIQUE using the device. The article most certainly lists Alfaro as COMBINING it with an ENDOSCOPE:
"The piezosurgery technique can also be combined with endoscopic assistance for corticotomies. 66"
Looking at listing #66 in the bibliography:
66. Hernández-Alfaro F, Guijarro-Martínez R. Endoscopically assisted tunnel approach for minimally invasive corticotomies: a preliminary report. J Periodontol. 2012;83:574–580.
"CONCLUSIONS
The authors present a simple yet effective technique
to achieve rapid orthodontic tooth movement. A
tunnel approach through one to three buccal vertical
incisions per arch is used to minimize soft-tissue
debridement and periodontal risks. Endoscopic assistance is useful to design and perform the corticotomies
and to select the sites needing bone augmentation.
The preservation of root integrity is further maximized with the use of piezosurgical instruments.
Compared to traditional corticotomies, the procedure
has manifest advantages in surgical time, technical
complexity, patient morbidity, and periodontium
preservation."
So, Alfaro indeed is a PIONEER of a technique used with the device (and has TONS of journal articles) and an INNOVATOR using the device. The article CREDITS him in the bibliography. But the actual inventor/s of the TRADEMARK device he uses called Piezosurgery® are different people.
