Did you know that over 30 million Americans suffer from temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorder with symptoms ranging from mild to severe? TMJ disorders can be quite painful with people experiencing extreme headaches, earaches, locking of the jaw, difficulty eating, facial pain, and more. For some, the discomfort is debilitating and makes it challenging to get through daily activities.
Dr. Alexandra S. George DDS is a neuromuscular dentist who specializes in helping patients find relief from pain and achieve a healthy, aligned bite. A treatment we offer in Pittsburgh that can relieve patients from pain and discomfort is DTR Therapy – the latest in dental technology.
About DTR Therapy
Disclusion Time Reduction (DTR) Therapy uses the latest in Tekscan and EMG technology to identify where friction and stress are causing facial muscles to hyperfunction. By using digital occlusal analysis data to evaluate muscle activity, we can accurately determine and measure contacts that are over-engaging. These movements are what can lead to hyperactive muscles and TMJ/D symptoms.
DTR Therapy can help us identify:
- Which muscles are overfiring during bite cycles
- Occlusal contacts that contribute to TMJ/D symptoms
- Where micro tooth adjustments should be made
- The timing of disclusion (how the opposing occlusal surfaces of the upper and lower teeth separate with mandible movement)
Dr. Alex measures pressure, timing, and muscle activity in real-time and uses this data to make accurate micro-adjustments to the tooth. The result? A better-balanced bite more functional bite activity without medication, appliances, invasive surgery, or lengthy dental treatments.
What DTR Therapy can treat
While DTR Therapy is most commonly used for patients with TMJ disorders, the treatment is not limited to TMJ/D. If you’re experiencing the following symptoms, DTR Therapy could be right for you:
- TMJ/D symptoms and/or diagnosis
- Bite feels off/pain after dental work
- Bite feels off/pain after braces or Invisalign
- Unanswered questions and misdiagnosed pain
We can use DTR Therapy to look at what’s causing bite pain or discomfort and create a customized treatment plan for your situation. Patients can experience a reduction in pain and discomfort after 1-3 treatments.
If you’re in the Pittsburgh area and DTR Therapy is something that you’re interested in, give us a call and we can schedule you for an initial consultation. Dr. Alex George is one of the 36 doctors in the world certified to provide DTR Therapy.
