In addition to her student, she also assisted others with their research at the Dentistry Group and served as a committee member for the most recent Complex Exam. Her student published three research papers in D1 journals – the third one this past August – and earned her Ph.D. this October. Krisztina Mikulás was honored with the Excellent Supervisor Award by the Centre for Translational Medicine.
Dr. Mikulás joined CTM as a supervisor in September 2021, after learning about the opportunity from a lecture by Prof. Peter Hegyi. “What drew me to the program was its strong emphasis on formulating clinical questions and identifying the best ones, and then thoroughly exploring the topics. I already had plans for clinical trials when I was at home on maternity leave. During that time, I thought a lot about scientific questions and planned what I would focus on when I returned to work. This was on my mind because my Ph.D. topic was related to biochemistry, which is quite far from what truly interests me professionally. That’s why I thought it would be a great opportunity to join CTM’s program and participate in research that interests me nowadays. I was very happy that Professor Hermann, our director at the Department of Prosthodontics, supported this plan.”
Dr. Mikulás’s first Ph.D. student was Peter Tajti, with whom she began research even before returning to the clinic after her maternity leave. Dr. Tajti’s first research topic focused on the clinical outcomes of monolithic zirconia and metal-ceramic implant-supported single restorations, while his second one dealt with the influence of abutment height on crestal bone stability and peri-implant soft tissue. Dr. Tajti published both of his research papers in D1 journals, and he earned his Ph.D. in April 2025. “I was very pleased that we could explore topics that interest me greatly. In 2019, I had already written guidelines on dental implantology as well as a textbook, so I already knew how to approach scientific questions and what kinds of issues in implantology might require further investigation.”
The second Ph.D. student of Dr. Mikulás was Xinyi Qian, who has just defended her doctoral thesis. Her research focused on implantology in the anterior esthetic zone. Her most recent publication, which, like her previous ones (1., 2.), was published in a D1 journal, made it clear that individualized healing significantly improves pink aesthetics around immediate single implants. “It was essential to address this question because previously it had been unclear what the best solution was in such cases. Our research has shown that anatomically shaped healing abutments and provisional restorations provide better pink aesthetics around immediately placed single implants, which is particularly relevant for restorations in the anterior region.”
Although Dr. Mikulás was Dr. Qian’s supervisor, she was also happy to help the other members of the Dental Group whenever they needed it. Since her favorite field is implant prosthetics, she most often contributes her expertise to topics in that area. She also specializes in periodontology and implantology, so she has insight into topics related to those fields as well. Dr. Mikulás has a broader perspective on the research projects because she conducts clinical trials as part of international collaborations.
It was a rewarding experience for Dr. Mikulás to participate in the most recent Complex Exam as a committee member. “I found that the students were very prepared and answered the questions posed to them after their presentations exceptionally well. It was particularly useful that, if a doctoral dissertation had limitations, those could be used to draw attention to new research topics. This opportunity is very valuable because it helps scientific work to move forward continually and enables us to clarify an increasing number of questions.” Dr. Mikulás is confident that she can soon resume her work at CTM with a new Ph.D. student. She already has some candidates among those who plan to begin the DMD-Ph.D. program in the next academic year.
(Szabó Emese)