The jaw joint (or temporomandibular joint) is not a fixed hinge, but a more complex structure where the location of the axis of rotation changes and simultanously translates as the jaws opens.
Meet Philip H. Levy, DDS
Developer of the "Levy Lingual Shelf," and a noted lecturer, teacher and clinician, Dr. Levy has made an intensive study of the stomatognathic system.
A 22-page monograph by Dr. Philip Levy explanding upon his presntation in the Symposium on "An Alterable Centric Relation In Denistry." Includes case studies of patients and follow-up care for up to 11 years post-treatment.
Dr. Philip Levy was a Guest Editor for a Symposium on "An Alterable Centric Relation In Denistry" published in the July 1975 issue of the Dental Clinics of North America.
The issue includes 10 articles contributed by respected educators and researchers in the fields of physiology, anatomy, endocrinology, and history.
Resources / Links
Here are two distinct and separate groups that illustrate the fact that Functional Jaw Orthopedics (physiological treatment) is alive and flourishing in all areas of the country. Interestingly, one group employs fixed appliances and the other removable appliances. That difference matters not in the least. What matters is that both groups treat and employ physiologic concepts in their respective modalities.
It is the concept that matters -- not the tools that are utilized in treatment.
American Academy of Gnathologic Orthopedics
Jackson Creek Dental Group, Jackson, CA
(Currently using the Levy Lingual Shelf. Click here to see page from their website.)
In The News
The cover story of the January 2011 issue of the American Journal of Orthodontics and Dento-facial Orthopedics revisited the implications of occlusion and TMD.
Dual articles in a Point/Counterpoint format examined the issue from the perspective of an orthodontist and an gnathologist.
The AJO-DO started off 2011 by featuring its Point/Counterpoint feature on the cover:
“Relationship between occlusion and temporomandibular disorders” The two articles, starting on page 9, examined the implications of this relationship from the perspective of an orthodontist (professor Charles S. Greene) and from the perspective of a gnathologist (professor Rudolf Slavicek).
The articles, as well as the entire issue (Vol. 139, Issue 1) are (as of this writing) available on-line at the AJO-DO website. (Go to www.ajodo.org/issues and click on “past issues.” Use the drop down menu to select “Vol. 139 No. 1 January, 2011 p.1-142.” Or click here to see PDF of articles.