Helping patients achieve optimal overall health through dentistry.

Our approach to dental care goes beyond guiding you toward a beautiful, healthy smile. We also want to help you achieve a greater level of overall health and wellness.

You may have noticed that we take a keen interest in how you’re doing healthwise. We’ll inquire about any recent changes to your health or any new medications you may have been prescribed. We ask these questions because your general health and your oral health are directly connected.

A healthy mouth supports a healthy body, and vice versa. When tooth decay, gum disease, and other oral ailments strike, their effects can have an impact on your entire body. “Oral-systemic health” is the term we use to describe this connection.

Oral-Systemic Health

Your oral health can directly and indirectly impact your overall health in different ways. One of the most invisibile ways your mouth influences your overall health is through your mouth’s microbiome.

Your mouth has both good-for-you and bad-for-you bacteria present. A combination of at-home dental care, a diet low in sugar, and regular dental visits keeps bad bacteria at bay. However, when tooth decay goes untreated or gum disease develops, your mouth’s microbiome becomes overwhelmed and bacteria travel to other areas of your body.

Cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, and bacterial pneumonia are all very serious systemic diseases linked to oral bacteria and oral infection. Periodontitis, the most advanced form of gum disease, is often the culprit.
We take a proactive approach to protect your oral-systemic health by focusing on the prevention of oral disease first and foremost, followed by swift treatment if a problem does arise. Patients who have already been diagnosed with a systemic condition will start on a gentle but effective treatment plan to restore their oral health and support their physical healing from their illness or disease.

Sleep-Disordered Breathing

Did you know your quality of sleep can affect everything from your mental health to your lifespan? Quality sleep is a tool your body uses to fight illness, recover, and reduce inflammation. For children, sleep directly impacts their development. We help patients get a great night’s rest every night by providing solutions for sleep-disordered breathing.

If you’re a chronic snorer or you find yourself feeling tired even after clocking in a solid night of sleep, you may be suffering from a sleep disorder like obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Our team is trained to identify red flags for breathing disorders that often go unnoticed by patients.

Many patients are surprised to learn that their dentist can help them with their sleep apnea and sleep-disordered breathing. Wearing an oral appliance at night and orofacial myofunctional therapy are two ways patients can find relief.

Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy

Orofacial myofunctional therapy is a type of physical therapy we use to help patients with dysfunctions relating to the tongue and other facial muscles.

We use myofunctional therapy to help patients with:

• Open-mouth breathing.
• Sleep-disordered breathing.
• Sleep apnea and OSA.
• Low and abnormal tongue posture.
• Speech and articulation struggles.
• Temporomandibular disorders.

Patients of all ages, including children, can benefit from myofunctional therapy. We’ve had great success using myofunctional therapy to help kids with speech, tongue thrusting when swallowing, pediatric sleep apnea, and oral fixations (such as thumbsucking or pacifier reliance).

In addition to providing myofunctional therapy, we also encourage collaboration as needed with speech therapy, chiropractic care, and orthodontic treatment in order to fully set patients up for success.