Adjunct Dentistry
TMJ Treatment
Are you suffering from TMD? Do you have headaches on a regular basis and medical doctors have not found a reason for them? Do your jaws pop and click and are they sore when you wake up in the morning? Do you have neck stiffness and is there pain in the back of the neck and shoulders? If you answered yes to any of these questions, chances are you have TMD (Temporomandibular Dysfunction)
TMD can be aggravated by trauma (whiplash, sports injuries) and is often caused by an improper dental occlusion or bite and improper upper or lower jaw development. People with deep bites (the upper incisor teeth severely overlap the lower incisor teeth), narrow upper jaws and lower jaws in a back or retruded position, are particularly susceptible to TMD.
People spend more money for headaches and jaw pain in the US on over-the-counter pain medication (Tylenol, Advil, Aspirin, Aleve) than any other drug. At Agnini Family Dental, our doctors are trained in diagnosing temporomandibular joint problems and in many instances finding relief for your symptoms. After a thorough TMJ examination, testing and diagnosis, the doctors may recommend a nighttime appliance called an NTI. This small, comfortable appliance is worn while you sleep and prevents bruxing or clenching of the back teeth, which not only causes wear of the teeth, but is the prime contributor of jaw muscle soreness and headaches. The NTI is the only appliance approved by the FDA to prevent migraine pain. For more information on the NTI, visit their website at www.headacheprevention.com
Snoring and Sleep Apnea Appliances
Does your partner keep you awake at night with constant snoring? The precious rest you are being deprived of, plus your partner’s snoring, could pose a serious health hazard to both of you.
Snoring occurs when the soft tissues of the palate contact the base of the tongue during breathing causing loud vibrations. When the tongue completely blocks off the posterior soft palate, and the person stops breathing for ten seconds or more, a condition exists called obstructive sleep apnea. This is a serious and dangerous condition which deprives the organs and cells of the body the vital oxygen they need. The number of sleep apnea episodes per hour is calculated and gives the doctor a diagnosis that your apnea condition is either mild, moderate or severe. This can be determined by taking a PSG (polysomnogram) which is an overnight study done in a sleep center.
At Agnini Family Dental, we offer a home sleep study device that can be easily placed at bedtime in the comfort of your own home and your own bed. It is very comfortable to wear and attaches to your wrist with two finger probes. In the morning it is returned office, where the sleep data is downloaded and analyzed.
Sleep apnea and associated snoring can be deadly. It can increase the risk of stroke, heart attack and coronary heart disease. If you are constantly tired, fall asleep easily throughout the day, have memory lapses, or inability to focus, you may be suffering from this serious condition. Out doctors at Agnini Family Dental work closely with an ENT physician to help you treat this disorder, increase the quality of your life, and help prevent a coronary or stroke event.
As an alternative to CPAP or surgery, we offer a mouth sleep appliance called SomnoDent. This device keeps the lower jaw in a forward position, helping to keep the airway open to prevent snoring and reduce sleep apnea. After proper diagnosis, we can determine if the SomoDent appliance is right for you. For further information visit www.somnomed.com
Proper Breathing
There are multiple reasons why children cannot properly breathe through their nose. When children mouth breathe, their upper and lower jaws do not grow normally due to improper lip, cheek and tongue forces. In the war between muscles, bone and teeth, muscles always win.
The end result from childhood, adolescence through adulthood is narrow jaw development resulting in severe teeth crowding, overbites, poor facial profiles, and in many cases tempromandibular joint (TMJ) problems.
At Agnini Family Dental we are the gatekeepers to airway problems and recognize the importance of a child who can breathe well, maintains good health, and has a beautiful face and smile. We work closely with an ENT physician to correct airway problems caused by enlarged tonsils, adenoids, nasal obstructions and allergies.
Once a good airway is established and the child can breath properly through the nose, we can then begin dentofacial orthopedics using functional appliances to develop the jaws in proper relation to each other and braces to straighten the teeth. Because the offending muscles are now in normal balance, the final treatment of the jaws and teeth is much more stable with a beautiful face and smile that endures throughout their life.
