An important new article on Muscle Engrams was published in the October Cranio Journal (pubmed abstract follows).
This paper was written by my good friend and respected colleague Dr Martin Lerman who is also the inventor of the Aqualizer appliance. Dr Lerman has proven that the muscle engrams of neuromuscular dentistry as described by Dr Barney Jankelson exist. While Dr Jankelson utilized ULF TENS (ultra low frequency trancutaneous electrical neurostimulation) to eliminate the muscle activity of the Engram Dr Lerman utilizes an Aqualizer Appliance.
An interesting side note is that Dr Jankelson used to use Aqualizers with his patients on TENS prior to taking a bite. The Engram is the way the body masquerades bite discrepancies by correction thru conditioned muscle reflex. As Dr Lerman clearly shows eliminating the Engram is an essential step evaluating underlying neuromuscular bite discrepancies. The Aqualizer which utilizes Pascal's third law balances pressure bilaterally by fluid dynamics. Pitch Roll and Yaw are corrected.
Patients with TMJ disorders, headaches, facial pain, masticatory muscle pain or neck pain will all find that Engrams are an obstacle to healing. Elimination of the Engram and correction of the (engram free) bite will lead to healing and elimination of pain.
This is an important article and I will discuss it in more detail in the future.
Elimination of headaches, Migraines and facial pain by identifying and bypassing Engrams is the heart of Neuromuscular Dentistry. Read more about Neuromuscular Dentistry in Sleep and Health Journal online @
http://www.sleepandhealth.com/neuromuscular-dentistry
The muscle engram: the reflex that limits conventional occlusal treatment.
Source
Jumar Corporation, Prescott, Arizona, USA. lesboblyn@aol.com
Abstract
The engram (the masticatory "muscle memory") is shown to be a conditionable reflex whose muscle conditioning lasts less than two minutes, far shorter than previously thought. This reflex, reinforced and stored in the masticatory muscles at every swallow, adjusts masticatory muscle activity to guide the lower arch unerringly into its ICP. These muscle adjustments compensate for the continually changing intemal and external factors that affect the mandible's entry into the ICP. A simple quick experiment described in this article isolates the engram, enabling the reader to see its action clearly for the first time. It is urged that every reader perform this experiment. This experiment shows how the engram, by hiding the masticatory muscles' reaction (the hit-and-slide), limits the success of the therapist in achieving occlusion-muscle compatibility. This finding has major clinical implications. It means that, as regards the muscle aspect of treating occlusion, the dentist treating occlusion conventionally is working blind, a situation the neuromuscular school of occlusal thought seeks to correct. The controversy over occlusion continues.
