Alex Dale Ehrlich, DDS, MS

Dr. Alex Dale Ehrlich is a Captain in the United States Navy Dental Corp. A native of Wyoming, Captain Alex Dale Ehrlich was born in Torrington on the 22th of May 1947. He graduated from Huntley High School in 1965 then attended Goshen County Community college earning his Associates of Arts degree in Biology.

In 1967 he enlisted in the United States Air Force and was trained as a Morse Code Intercept Operator. Duty stations included Lackland AFB Texas, Biloxi Mississippi and Darmstadt Germany. He was honorably discharged as a Sergeant in 1971 and returned to college at the University of Wyoming earning a B.S in Biology with Honors and an M.S. in Microbiology. In 1975 he was commissioned into the Navy as an Ensign under the 1925I program and graduated from Indiana University School of Dentistry in 1979 with a Doctorate of Dental Surgery degree.

For his first assignment in the Navy, he was accepted into the General Practice Residency (GPR) Program at Oak Knoll Naval Hospital in Oakland California. Duty stations following the GPR included Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 133, Seabee Homeport in Gulfport Mississippi and the USS LaSalle (AGF 3) in the Persian Gulf. In 1985 he was selected for training in the Comprehensive Dentistry Residency program at the Naval Postgraduate Dental School (NPDS) in Bethesda Maryland. Upon completion of this residency he was assigned to the Marine Corps, 3rd FSSG in Okinawa Japan as the clinic director at Futenma, Marine Corps Air Station. After a tour with the Marines he was assigned as Assistant Dental Officer at the Naval Dental Clinic at Naval Air Station, Pensacola. In 1991 he was selected for training in the Craniofacial Pain Fellowship at the University of Florida in Gainesville. Upon completion of this training he was assigned on staff at the NPDS where he established the Orofacial Pain Specialty for the Navy Dental Corps and served as the first Specialty Leader for Temporomandibular Disorders and Orofacial Pain. In 1996 he was assigned to the Oral Surgery department at the National Naval Medical Center where he served as staff and mentor for the GPR and Oral Surgery residents. In 1999 he transferred back to NPDS and was co-founder of the first DOD Orofacial Pain Center and first DOD Orofacial Pain Residency program. In 2003 he was assigned to the Naval Institute for Dental and Biomedical Research where he served as Department Head, Technical Director and currently as the Commanding Officer.

Captain Ehrlich’s awards include: the Meritorious Service Medal (three awards), the Navy/Marine Corps Commendation Medal (two awards), Navy/Marine Corps Achievement Medal (two awards), Meritorious Unit Commendation, Battle “E” Ribbon (three awards), U.S. Air Force Good Conduct Medal, Fleet Marine Force Ribbon, National Defense Service Medal (two awards), Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Sea Service Deployment Ribbon (three awards).

He maintains membership in the American Dental Association, American Academy of Orofacial Pain and the Academy of General Dentistry. He is a Fellow of the Academy of General Dentistry and American Academy of Orofacial Pain, Diplomate American Board of Orofacial Pain and Diplomate Federal Services Board of General Dentistry and American Board of General Dentistry. He is a Board Member and Treasurer of the American Board of Orofacial Pain and former Board Member of the Federal Services Board of General Dentistry. He is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the Uniform Services University of the Health Sciences.