The Case of The Missing MRI

At this time, it is the middle of 2023, and I am baffled and frustrated. Just in the past few weeks, I have met a respectable number of people who have reported chronic pain for years on end. They told me about their experiences with joint injections, physical therapy, massage and medications of course.  They were all just sick and... read more »

TMJ Disorder and Exercise

When seeking effective treatment for temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD), various factors must be taken into account. TMD primarily involves the displacement of articular discs, which cover the condyles (cartilage on the upper part of the jaw bones), resulting in the compression of nerves and blood vessels. Consequently, individuals experience pain in the head and neck region. Additionally, TMD commonly leads... read more »

Response to the FDA Concerns Regarding AGGA and other Similar Devices

Released March 31, 2023 Over the many years of treating TMJ disorders, my office has realized a couple of things: Do not use appliance therapy that is fixed or cemented in the mouth and using the AGGA or similar devices like FAGGA, MARA, ARA, FORA and RPE may not be wise when it comes to achieving the goal of palatal... read more »

The Case of the X-Ray and the Analogy

Recently, like two weeks ago, my beautiful and amazing CBCT (fancy X-ray system) basically went on the fritz and died. Multiple technicians showed up at my office saying they could fix the problem and bring life back to my machine, but alas, it has remained broken all this time. Technician after technician has shown up, told me they could fix... read more »

How Oral Health Affects the TM Joints

It is really important to be aware of your oral health for so many reasons. Let’s start off with something that is considered to be really obvious; the loss of a tooth. When gum disease or a cavity gets to the point where a tooth is damaged beyond repair, it is  likely that you will have to extract that tooth.... read more »

TMJ Disorder and Exercise

When is comes to TMD (Temporomandibular joint Disorder), there are many things that a person has to consider when looking for successful treatment. With TMD, most of the time the articular discs that cover the condyles (the cartilage on top of the jaw bones) are displaced and will pinch nerves and blood vessels. This leads to head and neck pain.... read more »

The Case of What Happens Behind the Scenes at Sleep and TMJ Therapy

I’ll admit that we run a very busy practice that sees around 20 patients each day, but you would never guess that because it is always quiet and peaceful in the office. First of all, we do not overbook our patients; we run a very tight ship and space our times out very carefully. Therefore, when you walk into my... read more »

Oral Cancer and TMD- Coincidence or Correlation?

There are so many factors involved with TMD (temporomandibular disorder) that it can make one’s head spin. When it comes to analyzing TMJ disorders, there are many factors that need to be examined. One of the first pieces to the puzzle is actually a palpation exam where the dentist presses on the various muscle groups to determine if any are... read more »

“I Have TMJ” What Does That Really Mean?

When a patient calls in and says, “I think I have TMJ” the office staff could possibly be quite flip. More than likely such a response would never happen. Realistically, what a person is trying to say is he or she is having a TMJ problem, not that they have a Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ). This is a bit of a... read more »