„Because occlusion plays such a dominate role in almost everything a dentist does, not understanding that role causes a major amount of wasted time, and makes it impossible to be predictive about complete patient comfort and satisfaction.”
Peter Dawson
In our clinic, we deal with the occlusion problems in a professional way, following the philosophy of Peter Dawson, an American professor.
What is occlusal disease? What does the treatment look like?
occurs when the teeth are not properly aligned, and it results in improper work of temporomandibular joints, teeth destruction, as well as overstraining muscles, which, in turn, results in headache.
The characteristic symptoms of the occlusal disease are:
- morning headache with unknown origin, often treated as migraine,
- sensitivity of teeth,
- grinding teeth while sleeping,
- toothaches with unknown origin,
- cervical lesions,
- abnormal condition and position of joints while opening the mouth widely (dislocation),
- tiredness visible on the face in the morning
It has to be remembered that untreated occlusal disease is always progressing.
In order to treat this disease properly, performing thorough diagnostic procedures is needed. It includes i.a. anamnesis, a range of tests depending on gathered information, making diagnostic models, registration of central relation using a facebow, equilibration on models in a dental articulator. The treatment itself can concern equilibration, orthodontic procedures when some occlusal defect occurs, as well as prosthetic procedures that are to restore abraded teeth.
is excessive teeth grinding and jaw clenching as a result of stress and straining the muscles. It can result in teeth abrasion. Short, abraded teeth do not contribute to the beautiful smile, what makes the face look older than the patient really is. It has to be remembered that bruxism is a condition determined by our brain, and it does not depend on occlusion. If the patient still grind their teeth after the treatment, it is necessary to mould an occlusal splint.