Do you suffer from jaw or neck pain and frequent headaches?

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1 Do you suffer from jaw or neck pain and frequent headaches? Relax... We ll Help Relieve Your Discomfort, Without Surgery Within Two Weeks! Page Inside: 1 Are You A Candidate For Treatment? What Is TMJ Therapy? Why Go To The Dentist? 3 What To Expect 4 FAQ

2 Are You A Candidate? Diagnosis: When you first visit our office, you will be asked if you have any of the following signs or symptoms: Symptom Checker Check all that apply: Clench or grind your teeth Frequent headaches/migraines Jaw click or pop Earaches Sleep disturbances Worn teeth Painful muscles Pain behind eyes Difficultyopeningandclosingmouth Ringing in ears Tingling hands or fingertips Dizziness Difficulty swallowing Loose teeth Facial pain Sensitive teeth Chewing difficulties Neck or shoulder pain Chipped teeth Postual problems Hot and cold sensitivity Nervousness or insomnia Snoring and sleep apnea I will be looking for the symptoms above and a number of signs in your posture, appearance and condition of your teeth, and existing bite that might aid in diagnosis of TMD. An imperfect bite often plays a significant role in these conditions. After assessing you, I may be able to resolve the problem, and relieve your discomfort within two weeks. - Dr. Edward Gelfand Did You Know that over 5% of the population suffers from TMD?

3 What Is TMJ Therapy? TMJ therapy involves assessing your current jaw position. Your bite is simply the position of your jaw when your teeth are together. Until recently, most dentistry has been based on the assumption that wherever your bite was naturally, was the correct position. This is considered one-dimensional dentistry. Today, Neuromuscular Dentists go beyond this and consider the entire system that controls the positioning and function of your jaw the teeth, muscles and joints. What does TMJ stand for? Temporo-Mandibular Joint Why Go To The Dentist? In most cases, the root of TMJ issues starts from neuromuscular problems, and more specifically between differences in jaw positioning in a relaxed muscle state versus the jaw position in a comfortable biting position. This relationship and harmony between teeth, facial muscles, the jaws and joints is best understood and treated by a dentist, and even more specifically by dentists who are further educated and experienced in Neuromuscular Dentistry and TMJ disorders. A Neuromuscular Dentist is able to pin point the source of pain in the teeth, mouth, head and neck with 95% accuracy. They treat the source of the pain in a way that gives a person relief and long term health and comfort. It is important to find a doctor with passion for treating TMJ issues. Someone who takes the time to find out exactly what is the source of the pain, tenderness, parafunctional habits created over the years and affecting everyday life. Do You Grind Your Teeth? People grind their teeth for a number of reasons. Doctors believe that it is because of stress. Dentists say that it happens because one s teeth are not properly aligned with each other. The teeth are put under enormous pressure which can wear away the enamel leading to exposed dentin and eventually teeth breakage. Bruxism is particularly bad if you have expensive dental work as grinding your teeth can destroy dental work as well as your natural teeth. Bruxism also puts great strain on the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) and can cause aching jaw and facial muscles and morning headaches.

4 What To Expect: 1 3 Diagnosis MuscleRelaxation Bite Registration We will create models of your teeth so the dentist can study the tooth structure and arrangement of your teeth It is almost impossible to achieve true muscle relaxation by just asking someone to relax their muscles. Instead, we use a TENS machine to deliver gentle electrical stimulation to increase the blood flow to your muscles and help them reach a relaxed state. After minutes, this exercise will allow your muscles to overcome their programming and go into a state of physiologic rest. Once your jaw is in a relaxed position, we will place a putty material between your upper and lower teeth to create a bite registration. Once it hardens, we will send it to our lab to create a custom orthotic for you. Interim Treatment (Phase 1): Once the dentist determines the perfect position for your jaw, an orthotic is fabricated to maintain that position. It is worn for a prescribed period (usually a few months) of time as a method to treat TMD symptoms or as an interim step to verify that the diagnosed new bite is correct before anything permanent is completed. Long-Term Treatment (Phase ): Long term treatment may involve fitting the chewing surface of teeth and the bite to match the orthotic and the comfortable relaxed position of the facial muscles and jaws. To do that, we may simply need to grind off a high spot or shape your teeth to permit your teeth to come into their proper position. In other cases, this may be achieved through orthodontic work (braces or Invisalign), and in other cases through reconstruction of the chewing surfaces of teeth with porcelain crowns and/or veneers. How much does therapy cost? Pricing ranges between $65 to $,700, depending on the extent of treatment. A portion may be covered by insurance. At Dawson, we help make your dental care easily affordable through convenient financing. This allows you to pay for your treatment in low monthly payments to fit your budget. 0% Financing Provided by HealthSmart Financial

5 View our Dawson patient video on-line at Also Available: Invisalign Guide What Could Happen If I Put Off Treatment? TMJ always gets worse over time, never gets better, and never goes away. Some people can live perfectly normal lives with minimal or no discomfort while others will have problems ranging from locked out jaws to severe pain. The most common scenario seen is a patient with clicking and popping of the jaw. This will progress to intermittent locking as the patient gets older where the jaw will feel like it gets stuck. This will eventually progress to a closed lock without reduction, which means the jaw will not be able to open more than 3 fingers wide. This stage is extremely difficult to treat. Cosmetic Dentistry Guide Isn t Dr. Gelfand your Cosmetic Dentist? Sedation Guide Dr. Gelfand restores people s smiles to perfection, as well as their entire mouth in many cases. Many of the full mouth reconstructions are done with a purpose of restoring TMJ health, and in the process he always keeps esthetics in mind. TMJ and facial muscles involved in chewing and the bite are a part of neuromuscular dentistry - something Dr. Gelfand is very passionate about. I believe that a person s smile impacts their self esteem and confidence. It inspires me to know that I play a role in transforming not only a person s smile, but also, more importantly, their life. Dr. Edward Gelfand, B.Sc., D.M.D. President & Founder Reserve a Free Consultation Today info@dawsondental.ca