703.478.9574LVI Neuromuscular Dentist
Reston and Arlington, VA
A good dental school gives a very fine education in general dentistry, and this is the prerequisite for becoming a practicing dentist. In recent years, two areas of dentistry have grown enormously and developed into specialties which require further education:
What is neuromuscular dentistry?
Neuromuscular dentistry focuses on the bite. When the lower jaw closes and meets the upper jaw, this is your bite, more formally known as your dental occlusion. In many people, that closure is not perfect, so that the teeth may come together in a misaligned way, rubbing against each other and causing premature wear and tear.
A neuromuscular dentist focuses on the jaw joint and the muscles and other structures which surround and support the teeth themselves. It can help with symptoms which have not traditionally been thought of as dental in nature:
- Headaches
- Jaw and facial pain
- Ringing in the ears
- Popping or clicking noises when the jaw moves
- Neck and shoulder pain
These are the main symptoms of temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD), also known as TMJ.
Computerized technology has been developed which enables a dentist who is trained in neuromuscular dentistry to diagnose TMD and treat it. TMD can easily develop into a very painful condition, and many people who suffer from it don’t think at first of seeing a dentist about it. They may see several doctors first, who may prescribe painkillers for the headaches, but eventually, when the cause of those headaches is dental, that person may find his or her way to a neuromuscular dentist. Then the pain relief can really begin.
What is LVI?
It’s the Las Vegas Institute for Advanced Dental Studies, in Las Vegas, Nevada. It’s the world’s leading post-graduate dentistry school. Dentists come from all over the world to expand their knowledge, improve their skills, and learn how to use the most recent technology.
LVI was founded in 1995 and offers a very comprehensive curriculum, both theoretical and practical. It offers a full education in both cosmetic dentistry and neuromuscular dentistry, and many dentists pursue both these fields.
It teaches a proactive approach to dentistry, so that an LVI graduate does more than just reactive procedures for his patients, such as fillings. Emphasis is placed on prevention and early diagnosis, on treating the whole patient rather than just a set of teeth, and on connecting dental health with overall physical health.
Dr. Katz is a graduate of LVI, where he studied both cosmetic and neuromuscular dentistry. In his practice in Reston and Arlington, Virginia, he offers a full array of the most recent and effective technology, including sophisticated sedation techniques for those who feel particularly anxious about seeing a dentist. He can do a full mouth neuromuscular reconstruction, if necessary to treat TMD and offers a full selection of cosmetic dentistry procedures as well.
For quick relief from persistent headaches or other facial or neck pain, an LVI-trained neuromuscular dentist is the best resource. Contact neuromuscular dentist Dr. Katz today in Herndon and schedule a Free Smile Evaluation.
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