FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
AMERICAN DENTAL PARTNERS ANNOUNCES THE ACCREDITATION OF UNIVERSITY DENTAL ASSOCIATES

Contacts:  (781) 224-0880, (781) 224-0880
Gregory A. Serrao, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
Breht T. Feigh, Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer

WAKEFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS - January 18, 2002 - American Dental Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADPI) announced today that University Dental Associates' Winston-Salem practices have received accreditation status from the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care ("AAAHC").

The AAAHC is a peer-based, not-for-profit organization that is nationally recognized for conducting extensive evaluations of ambulatory health care organizations to ensure the highest quality standards. More than 1,300 ambulatory health care organizations across the United States are accredited by the AAAHC. Currently, just 12 group dental practices have achieved accreditation status.

University Dental Associates is a multi-specialty dental group with practices located in Winston-Salem, Raleigh-Durham and Charlotte, North Carolina. "University Dental's accreditation is a recognition of the group's clinical excellence. It is well deserved and is validation of the group's outstanding, high quality practice of dentistry," said Gregory A. Serrao, Chief Executive Officer. "The accreditation of the Winston-Salem practices is an important first step in our accreditation efforts in North Carolina, and we look forward to having all of our affiliated North Carolina practices being accredited," added Mr. Serrao.

Dr. Raymond Garrison, President of University Dental Associates and Chairman of the Department of Dentistry at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, added, "Since our affiliation with American Dental Partners in June 1999, the dentists, clinical staff and management team in Winston-Salem have expended tremendous effort to achieve accreditation. We have developed a professional environment for providing high quality patient care, and this only serves to enhance the dental residency and continuing education programs we conduct in cooperation with Wake Forest University School of Medicine and North Carolina Baptist Hospitals."

American Dental Partners encourages its affiliated dental groups to pursue AAAHC accreditation as a means to set and maintain measurable quality benchmarks and achieve the highest possible standard of patient care. Dr. Jesley C. Ruff, Vice President and Chief Professional Officer of American Dental Partners, works with the Company's affiliates in the pursuit of accreditation. "We hope that by having our affiliated dental groups be part of a select group of dental practices accredited by the AAAHC, American Dental Partners will be at the forefront of promoting clinical excellence in the dental profession," said Dr. Ruff. "While AAAHC accreditation is a rigorous and demanding process, we believe it will help our affiliated dental groups continue to recruit high quality professionals and enhance relationships with patients and local dental communities," Dr. Ruff added.

American Dental Partners is one of the nation's leading business partners to dental groups. The Company is affiliated with 19 dental groups and operates 155 dental facilities with approximately 1,400 operatories located in 14 states. Eight of the Company's affiliates are accredited by the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care.

Note: Some of the information in this press release contains ``forward-looking statements'' within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words "believe", "expect", "anticipate", "project" and similar expressions, among others, identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date the statement was made. Such forward-looking statements are subject to uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected, anticipated or implied. Certain factors that might cause such a difference include, among others, the Company's risks associated with overall or regional economic conditions, contracts its affiliated dental groups have with third party payors and the impact of any terminations or potential terminations of such contracts, the cost of and access to capital, the tight labor markets, the Company's acquisition and affiliation strategy, management of rapid growth, dependence upon affiliated dental groups, dependence upon service agreements and government regulation of the dental industry. Additional risks, uncertainties and other factors are set forth in the "Risk Factors" section of the Company's Registration Statement on Form S-4 (File No. 333-56941).