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Dental Research Helps Resolve
Head, Neck, Facial and Low Back Pain.
By Patricia Talerico
The song, "The head bone is connected to the neck bone; the
neck bone is connected the shoulder bone" and so on reveals functional
anatomic relationships that led researcher Dr. James Carlson, of Seattle
Washington, to invent an instrument that literally helps realign the body
and reduce or eliminate chronic head, neck, facial and low back pain of
structural origin.
Doctor Carlson observed that parallel relationships exist in the structurally
stable human body which permit it to maintain balance. These parallel planes
include the ear plane, eye plane, shoulder plane, elbow and knee planes
and pelvic plane. Doctor Carlson's observation revealed that the upper jaw
or maxillae was another anatomic part that was also parallel to these other
planes.
The architectural design of the human body has structural balance
as its basic theme. When parallelism is lost, imbalances result with potential
debilitating symptoms that can occur in various parts of the body. Doctor
Carlson observed clinically that patients who did not respond to traditional
therapy for chronic complaints of headaches, cervical pain, low back pain
and leg pain frequently had parallel alignment distortions of their upper
jaw. This misalignment became obvious once the patient's upper dental model
was mounted on Dr. Carlson's Accu-Liner instrument.
Patients with premature loss of molar teeth with tilting of adjacent teeth,
narrowed jaws, deep bite, worn down partials or full dentures offer prime
examples of jaw misalignments. The jaw misalignment generates a mechanical
problem every time the patient chews or when his teeth, partial or full
dentures contact. The upper and lower jaws must work together with the muscles
of the mouth, head and neck. If the upper jaw plane is not parallel, the
muscles will not work as efficiently. Often the first signs of this imbalance
are sore teeth or sore spots under partial or full dentures that will not
go away and tightness of the upper neck, shoulders and facial muscles. As
the imbalance persists, micro-traumas occur to the soft tissues, nerves
and tiny blood vessels surrounding the teeth or in the gums and can result
in muscle spasms. It is these muscle spasms that trigger off the chain reaction
causing the spine, shoulders, pelvis and legs to be out of alignment. The
domino effect of these chronic imbalances cause additional tension on other
muscles, nerves and blood vessels. The pains that develop often do not respond
to steroid injections, pain and anti-inflammatory medications, physical
therapy, chiropractic or osteopathic manipulations. Researchers have found
that only when the structural imbalance has been corrected can the symptoms
be resolved.
A local researcher and author of "Headaches Aren't Forever", Dr.
Gerald H. Smith, has collaborated with Dr. Carlson for the past two and
a half years to refine the clinical techniques maximizing the instrument's
effectiveness. Doctor Smith, a recognized authority in the field of head,
neck and facial pain, offers several case histories to emphasize the significance
of Dr. Carlson's
discovery.
Case 1. Twenty Year Migraines and Low back Pain
J.G. is a 68 year-old female who has suffered severe migraine headaches
and lower back pain for 20 years. This patient received a multitude of therapies
over the twenty year period that included various medications, manipulation
and physical therapy. Unfortunately these approaches only provided temporary
relief at best. The patient's underlying problem was an old set of dentures
that were severely worn down in a distorted horizontal plane. The structural
imbalances set up by the misaligned denture was the direct cause for the
upper cervical muscle spasms that entrapped the nerves and blood vessels
to her head. Within several weeks after new full dentures were inserted
that corrected the misaligned horizontal and vertical planes, the patients
migraines and lower back pain disappeared.
Case 2. Ten Year Facial, Neck, Shoulder, Lower Back Pain and Leg Weakness.
A.C. is a 46 year-old female patient who was referred from Ottawa Canada
by her orthodontist. This patient had suffered left side pain from the top
of her head to her toes. Ten years of traditional therapy by medical and
dental practitioners did not produce any lasting relief.
The patient was presently undergoing orthodontic treatment for a poor bite
and was wearing an upper and lower removable appliances. The upper dental
appliance and model of the patient's mouth were mounted on the AccuLiner
instrument to analyze the parallel planes. The upper appliance was corrected
by grinding down the acrylic material to establish a horizontal plane. Within
five minutes after inserting the corrected appliance, 90% of the patient's
left sided pain pattern disappeared. Additional nutritional and manipulative
treatment was provided during the next several days and increased the relief
to a 98% level which the patient has maintained for over 18 months.
Case 3. Four Years of Incapacitating Facial Pain
Mrs. B.G., a 44 year-old female, suffered severe incapacitating facial pain
for a four year period. Mrs. G. was a registered nurse in Pittsburgh, PA.
She had become gradually affected by facial pain to a point where she had
to stop working. The pain affected not only the left side of her face but
caused her left eye to completely close. The patient was treated by numerous
medical doctors including a complete evaluation at the Cleveland Pain Clinic.
As a last resort the patient was put on the new miracle drug Immitrex, for
migraine headaches. At $40 per injection, this treatment brought only partial
relief.
An evaluation of the patient's problem revealed that her pain was caused
by nerve entrapment from a spastic muscle. The patient's 15 year-old ill
fitting upper denture wore down to a point which reduced vertical support
for the main chewing muscles. The resulting spasm put pressure on a branch
of the trigeminal or 5th cranial nerve causing facial pain and closure of
her left eye. Resolving the muscle spasm and correcting the denture brought
permanent relief.
Non-Specific Medical Complaints As Related to Jaw Position.
A twelve year study conducted by a fifteen member research group
of Ph D's, physicians and dentists at the Children's Medical Center, Osaka
Japan showed a high correlation between jaw imbalances and varied medical
problems. Over 20,000 patients were studied for various medical complaints
that had no definite diagnosis for the underlying cause. These maladies
included headaches, asthma, allergies, postural problems (scoliosis- curvature
of the spine), Parkinson's disease, respiratory problems, epilepsy, gynecological
problems, eye problems, facial and neck pains, etc. Each patient was treated
with a dental orthopedic appliance which reestablished a corrected jaw position.
In 66.6% of the patients treated there was either a reduction in symptoms
or total resolution of their problem.
The neuro-anatomy of the head and neck region is extremely complex and integrally
related to one's jaw position. Dentists trained in this specialized field
and utilizing state of the art technology can now offer a non-invasive approach
to resolving the age old problem of pain.
Dr. James Carlson, D.D.S.
1026 112th Avenue N.E.
Suite C-4
Bellevue, WA 98004
(206) 455-0484
FAX: (206) 455-2756
Dr. Gerald H. Smith, D.D.S.
Luxembourg Corporate Center
303 Corporate Drive East
Langhorne, PA 19047
USA
(215) 968-4781
FAX: (215) 968-8904
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