June 2011 – Clenching and grinding of your teeth has been known to be a common cause of dental breakdown, muscle pain and headaches. Dentists often use intra oral appliances or “splints” of different configurations to reduce the activity of the muscles that control the jaw.
Most dentists who use appliance therapy rely on feeling the muscles to see if their appliance reduces the ability of the muscles to clench. This technique is highly subjective and prone to error. Most dentists and patients use the appliance for a period of time and hope that it was built correctly and that it gives the patient relief. If the appliance didn’t work, another configuration is tried. This process can be slow and expensive for the patient.
More advanced dentists use electromyography (EMG) to measure the electrical activity of the craniofacial muscles. This allows for an objective comparison of the impact of the appliance on the patient’s dysfunction. These clinicians can measure their patient’s current capacity to clench, and test different configurations of splints to find the best solution in the first appointment, before the patient leave the office. The expense and learning curve of most EMG systems have kept this capacity out of all but the most advanced dental practices.
Dr. Ronald Auvenshine has been asked to join the Product Development Team of BioRESEARCH Assoc. Inc. of Milwaukee, WI. BioRESEARCH is the world leader in craniofacial diagnostic aids and with Dr. Mitsch’s help, they are working to develop a low-cost, easy-to-use EMG that any dentist can use. Together, they hope to solve the problem that most offices simply guess about the effectiveness of their appliance therapy and hope the patient comes back feeling better.
Dr. Auvenshine’s role on the Product Development Team is to clinically test each new EMG prototype developed by BioRESEARCH and give an expert opinion to the engineers for development of the final device to be released in Fall of 2011. Dr. Auvenshine will also help to develop the most effective and efficient protocols for using the system in a general dental practice.
“I am thrilled to be a part of this development team. It is something I am passionate about – to make accurate measuring tools that are affordable for every dental practice,” stated Dr. Auvenshine.
With the rising cost of health care, Dr. Auvenshine knows it is critical to offer an affordable and objective muscle test to any patient that is experiencing pain, dental breakdown or splint therapy.
For more information on the overall goals of the product development team, call the Director of the M-Scan Product Development Team, Dr. Paul Mitsch, at 316.775.2482 or e-mail him at pmitsch@earthlink.net. For more information from the manufacturer, BioRESEARCH Assoc., you can contact Mr. Greg Kamyszek, Executive Vice President, at 1-800-251-2315 or e-mail him at gregk@bioresearchinc.com.