Dr. Daniel Hawkins is an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon and Assistant Professor at the University of Pittsburgh. He obtained his undergraduate degree at Allegheny College and went on to earn his DMD from the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine in 2016. He completed his residency in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery in 2020 at Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center.
Due to extensive time spent training under Dr. Joe Niamtu in the area of facial cosmetic surgery during residency, Dr. Hawkins obtained his facial cosmetic surgery certificate in the state of Virginia upon graduation from residency. He then served as a full-time faculty member and Assistant Professor at both the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center and Virginia Commonwealth University School of Dentistry from 2020 through 2024. During his time at VCU Medical Center, he dedicated a large portion of his practice to surgical and non-surgical facial cosmetic procedures. He then obtained his board certification from the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery in March of 2022.
Due to his broad scope of practice and high surgical standards, about 3 years into practice he was selected as a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. Dr. Hawkins practice areas of specialized focus include: facial cosmetic surgery, orthognathic (corrective jaw) surgery and treatment of obstructive sleep apnea, micro neurosurgery for peripheral trigeminal nerve repair, and complex maxillofacial reconstruction requiring dental implants; but he also still continues to practice the full scope of other areas of oral and maxillofacial surgery including facial trauma, TMJ surgery, benign pathology and reconstruction, dental extractions, and out-patient anesthesia.
Dr. Hawkins has authored book chapters in the areas of obstructive sleep apnea, orthognathic (corrective jaw) surgery, trigeminal nerve injury, and out-patient anesthesia. His ongoing research interests are in the fields of utilizing 3-dimensional airway data in diagnosing patients with obstructive sleep apnea and minimizing opioid use for out-patient wisdom teeth removal.