Advanced Lightwire Functionals

mimihops

Hello, just wondering if anyone has any experience of using this appliance? A friend of mine is really suffering badly with TMJ at the moment and her dentist has suggested that she would try ALFs to see if it helps. I haven't been able to find much info online about it, so was just wondering what peoples experiences has been or what the dentists on here reckon?

btkm8unsl0w5r4

Well its a new one one me, it certainly is not a "conventional therapy" for TMJD, I looked up the website of a few of the inventors of this system and am not too impressed so far with the rational for treatment, but maybe it does work well.

The classic literature on TMD suggests no link between crooked teeth, misaligned teeth, arch width and TMD. But cause and effect in this area is very difficult to show definitive. I find no research papers in my usual spots pubmed, athens, swetswise. It also seems to branded a holistic therapy, not really sure what that is suppose to mean in this context.

Anyone with some useful information?

ballsymchugh

never heard of it at all. i tried to read about it but my eyes got up and walked away. seems to be a kind of orthodontic appliance, along the lines of orthotropics which i did do some work into. but as fitzgeme said, there's not evidence to link what these 'functional appliances right down at the cellular level' do to TMD

vishal

Your dentist probably was trained by a guy name skip truitt. His philosophy for treatments is very unconventional. I have read some of his stuff and I don't buy into his treatments. Doesn't mean they don't work

mimihops

Thanks for the replies, it definitely seems a bit unconventional alright and that is why she was cautious about trying it, but at the same time she is in a good bit of pain so needs to try something to ease the TMJ. Does anyone know of a good dentist or specialist thats deals with TMJ in Cork? So that she could get a second opinion on what to try besides the ALF appliance? She has had no treatment for it so far and all that was suggested by her dentist was ALFs. It would be great if someone had a recomendation to send me a pm. Thanks :-)

btkm8unsl0w5r4

mimihops wrote: »

She has had no treatment for it so far a

Defo worth trying the usual treatment, pain killers, muscle relaxants, soft diet, splints first before trying something more expensive and irreversible. There is a TMJD/pain specialist in cork but the name illudes me at the moment........anyone *** by PM see new forum charter ****

ballsymchugh

the name is bugging me too, all i remember is he's a REALLY boring lecturer. i hope he doesn't check this.
there's always the dental hospital. let oral surgery and restorative fight it out.

mimihops

Thanks everyone, got a name via PM of the TMJ specialist so she is going to visit him and see what he reckons and leave the ALF for the time-being.

carrickmilo

I'm wearing an ALF for the past 9 months. I can see the changes in my teeth and face already and I'm 50. Teeth spacing out nicely and face widening.
It was developed by a Californian dentist called Nordstrom in the 80s and based on the earlier Crozat appliance.
The concept is to use the teeth as handles to move/develop the maxilla and in so doing remove stress patterns in the cranium. I know everytime I get an adjustment and the ALF is tightened I can feel it in my head. After about two weeks the pressure has moved the bones and the appliance is passive again. I'm an orthodontic retreatment case and need arch widening and lenghtening

btkm8unsl0w5r4

Stop necroposting, your posting about this in every thread you can, stop it...thread closed.