My 14yr old son went to an ortho and complained about his jaw hurting. The ortho refused to fit him with braces until he had seen a TMJ specialist (Dr. Holt) who doesn't take any insurance and wants 200. for the first visit! Now, I have 4 kids at home and am a single mom. I can't afford to pay that and my ins. wouldn't cover it. I've been told by others that some orthos put braces on to help with TMJ. I'm just not sure what to do now.... any ideas?
WOW!! You moms are awesome! I have a couple of names I'm going to call and get another opinion. Several of them are quite close to us so I'll start there! Thanks much!
Have you asked Dr. Holt's office if you can make small payments? Dr. Holt is THE man for TMJ. He is a TMJ pioneer and highly recommended.
C. S.
Try Dr. Curtis in Colleyville. He is a TMJ specialist.
Hi N.,
We LOVE Johnson & Collins orthodontists. They are very nice and definitely take insurance. Also, they can work out a pay plan for anything out-of-pocket. THey have offices in Bedford and Southlake Town Square.
Good luck!
M.
"Mom on a Mission"
www.GoodHealthMadeSimple.com/M.
Check into an appointment with Dr. Halpert in Colleyville - an excellent dentist and he will recommend a great TMJ specialist if he feels he needs one. My whole family has been seen by Dr. Halpert for 16 years. I would check out a new ortho if it was me.
Try Dr. Delgado in Hurst. My husband & daughter both went there for ortho consult, and my husband is very impressed with him.
Also, Dr. Holt has been around a LONG time; he was my dentist as a teen back in the late 70's, early 80's before he began to specialize in TMJ. He is well-regarded as one the best TMJ specialists in the area; I recommend doing as one of the other posters did & try to file on your medical insurance rather than dental; it won't hurt to try.
I just started seeing Dr. Holt b/c the ortho would not touch me until I did so. They don't take my insurace, but I am filing it as out of network w/ blue cross to get them to pay me back for 80 percent of it. You need to see if you are covered for "non surgical treatment of TMJ". through medical, not dental. I am wearing a "splint" like a retainer. I have been in it a little over a week and I already feel better.
I don't think that any orthodontist is going to touch him with jaw problems....it can make it much worse.
Also, Dr. Holt's office has many different payment options/plans. Hope this all helps.
Hi N.,
I have TMD (also called TMJ) and first had symptoms about 3 1/2 years ago when I was pregnant. Because of the pregnancy I could not use anti-inflammatory meds to help with the pain (I had SEVERE pain). So, I did loads of research and tried several different things. First, let me tell you that very few insurance policies pay for TMD related treatments. It first has to be determined that your TMD is caused by bruxism (teeth grinding). I have since learned that only a small percentage of people have TMD due to bruxism (go figure). So, first check with your insurance company to see if they even cover it at all.
I was also originally referred to Dr. Holt and I did go to the first visit which I paid out of pocket for. He told me that I had severe osteoarthritis in my jaw and then I would need a night and day bite splint, followed by braces (which I already had when I was a teenager), followed by jaw surgery.
Well, because I was pregnant and in major pain, I explored my options. I tried chiropractic (which many insurance plans do cover) which helped tremendously! My chiropractor is a family friend and practices in Grapevine. His name is Dr. Justin Jordan. I can look up his phone number for you if you like. Send me an e-mail at ____@____.com
I also did accupuncture which helped as well. Most insurance does not pay for this but I paid for it because I was deseprate! Each treatment costs around $75 or so. You can expect to do around 3-7 treatments. But,I would really only recommend this if your son is in severe pain. Really, the chiropractic treatments should be very helpful.
Finally, I was thankfully, referred to a TMD specialist in Ft. Worth named Dr. Sid Holleman. He suffers from TMD himself and used to practice family dentistry. He decided to specialize (which, by the way, there is no formal specialty -- medical or dental -- in which doctors & dentists can study TMD -- it is mainly through workshops, etc. that they "specialize") Dr. Holleman learned whatever he could through formal coursework and just practicing on himself. He studies just about everything he can get his hands on, and I like him because he has a more holistic approach. He did NOT think I had osteoarthritis and that surgery & braces were not necessary at all! Anyway, he made a bite splint for me for around $750 (if memory serves) vs. the $2,000 plus price tag Dr. Holt quoted me (just for the splint, not the braces or surgery he recommended). Dr. Holleman is fantastic. He will even do paperwork for you to submit to your insurance company to see if you can be covered by your plan (I had to pay out of pocket unfortunately).
Between the bit splint (I only wear it at night) and chiropractic (I only go as needed), and the jaw exercises Dr. Holleman recommended, I have never experienced the level of pain that I did during my pregnancy.
As for your son and his need for braces...here's the deal. TMD may actually be exacerbated by braces -- some people even think it can be caused by them. It's an ongoing debate. The fact is, no one really knows for sure. Anyway, I would check out Dr. Holleman and you can bring all your questions and concerns to him. He takes the time to talk with you and answer all your questions.
If you have further questions and/or want contact information, feel free to e-mail me. Good luck!
J.
I have TMJ and I have seen Dr. Terry Angevine in Flower Mound. He is wonderful. He also pulled my daughter's wisdom teeth and I have referred several to him. Everyone loves him.
I agree that it might be wise to seek the opinion of another ortho. At 35, I got braces for the purpose to correct a bad bite that was causing some of the TMJ issues I was having. They did help, by the way.
Contact Dr. Louis Miller in Colleyville on Colleyville HWY 26. Our dentist in Amarillo recommended him because as he put it,"He is more interested in your health than his Mercedes payment"
Have you tried another Ortho for another opinion? Since you have insurance which is a plus-I'm sure they have more than one Ortho. to choose from and insurance will cover another office visit for another opinion. Also, I'm sure if you call your insurance co. for a list of TMJ specialists(whatever their real title is), they will give you some in your network who actually do accept your insurance!
N.,
braces for tmj does not help only makes worse, only get braces if absolute necessary, you need to find the cause of the tmj if you can,was there an accident did he bite down on something hard open mouth to wide,other dental work done, a soft mouth guard could help, but changing foods would also help
no chewey, or hard foods,no caffine no chewing gum etc..
take advil and put heat on the jaw, ear and neck area as needed. please keep in touch.
you should google tmj and tmd on web there are alot of info
and I have heard good things about dr holt
Dr Curtis in Colleyville is great! Give his wife Jackie a call - mention J. P. reccommended you...they'll take GREAT care of you guys! Their number is ###-###-#### and located off 26 in Colleyville.
Dr. Holt is the absolute best out there from all the research I did prior to using him. He is a pioneer in his field and your son couldn't be in better hands. TMJ is so painful and I didn't realize what a better quality of life I would have without it. It does just get worse over time and braces can make it worse. I suspect that was the cause of mine getting so unbearable through my 20s. Dr. Holt is some huge sticker shock on price at first, but they have several different payment plans. I can't say enough good things about him. There are others out there, but none compare to the knowledge on TMJ in Dr. Holt's office. Other's claim to be good TMJ doctors but they can make your condition worse if you're not careful.
