May 28, 2013: San Jose, Costa Rica: Dr. Julian Conejo, of Colina Dental in Escazu, Costa Rica was featured in the January-February issue of Dentista Empresario magazine, a dental trade publication covering issues related to dental industry executives, dentists and dental entrepreneurs. In this special article, Dr. Conejo shared how his passion for surfing became a love of serving patients.

At the age of 17, Julian Conejo Gutierrez had to choose between his first love of surfing or following his family’s footsteps in dentistry. Fourteen years later, Dr. Conejo not only continues to surf the shores of his native Costa Rica, but he’s also riding a wave of success in his chosen dental profession.

“Because of them and their mentoring,” Dr. Conjeo told the magazine, referring to the professors and parents who helped shape his career, “I made the career choice of odontology, which I love more and more every day.”

Like his parents, Dr. Conejo attended dental school at Universidad Latina in San Jose, Costa Rica, where the esteemed Dr. Miguel Alfaro and Dr. Vince Prada helped inspire their star student to greater heights. After graduation he went on to study abroad at Prosthodontics Universidad Internacional in Mexico, where he also served as an assistant professor.

Teaching became another passion for Dr. Conejo, who has given numerous lectures throughout Costa Rica as well as Latin America and Europe. Specializing in dental implants, ceramic restoration, and CAD-CAM technology, Dr. Conejo has won many awards and has been featured in several publications, including Quintessence and Dental Dialogue.

Dr. Conejo’s most recent work as Project Director for JC Dental Education allows him and a group of colleagues to share their dental knowledge online through a series of lectures and writings. In a merger of dental and communications technology, the program allows Dr. Conejo and others to use the Internet for continuing education.

Despite his remarkable professional success, the 31-year-old Dr. Conejo remains dedicated to self-improvement and continuing education. He has also set his sights on pursing his love of teaching. Dr. Conejo is also the head of the Porcelain Pearls Dental Laboratory, the only one of its kind in Costa Rica. The lab produces computerized surgical guides for implant placement from previous computerized prosthetic planning.

“Personally, I like to always be researching, questioning, and learning,” Dr. Conejo said. “Because of all the time that I spend with my patients, it is complicated devoting so much time continuing education. For that reason we created the website (www.jceducaciondental.com ) and the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/JCeducaciondentalcr where people can visit and have the convenience of learning when and where you want.”

Dr. Conejo also uses the CAD-CAM technology with the CEREC system for ceramic comprehensive restorations in a single session. The CAD-CAM technology is the most used in the world and has over 25 years of continuous successful development with more than 250 scientific studies on its clinical safety. This technology allows for dust free unit prints and digital 3D impressions with precise accuracy.

And somehow Dr. Conejo still finds time to hang 10 on his surfboard. Just as he and his fellow surfers are always looking to catch that perfect wave, Dr. Conejo is also constantly striving to take dentistry to the next level.