<![CDATA[Physical Therapy Denver- hANS Group - hANS TMJ & Orofacial blog]]>Sun, 08 Dec 2024 20:39:14 -0800Weebly<![CDATA[Having a Supportive Partner was this Patient's Key to TMJ Success]]>Mon, 18 Nov 2024 02:56:53 GMThttp://hansptgroup.com/hans-tmj--orofacial-blog/having-a-supportive-partner-was-this-patients-key-to-tmj-successI want to share with you a story from a patient that just finished treatment with me.

There are so many important points to dive into with this story- but what I found most helpful to share involves the ultimate reason why this patient got better-

Because his partner went out of her way to encourage him and support him

And he acknowledged that he wouldn't have moved forward and gotten better without his supportive partner's encouragement.

And here's how she did that-

She recognized that ultimately he had to decide whether he wanted to live his life in pain moving forward and taking daily pain-relieving medications.

Or-

Was he willing to make the decision to finally get back to normal again and return to living his best life!   

I get it. I've heard the story from my patients many many times.  So many TMJ treatments out there are really expensive and... they really don't work.  

Or are really quite inexpensive and... those really don't do much either.  Maybe some temporary relief at best, but more than anything- just time-consuming.  

And the worst thing is that when you have enough treatments that don't work... you often start to believe- NOTHING will work.  

And that's what this patient was believing when he came to see me.  He'd been referred to me by an incredible nationally-renowned dentist/endodontist.  And he'd read my many highly positive reviews.   He saw all my advanced certification and credentials.  But... he still was hesitant to move forward.

Unfortunately, that's the one thing that will never get you where you want to go in life.

So many patients that I see in my office are "givers".  They give to everyone else in their life that they love.  But they so rarely give lovingly to themselves.  

Thankfully, as he told me, his partner loves him dearly and recognized this.  And she generously explained to him that to solve his daily pain it was well worth it financially.  To finally get the help he needed and to see him get past his TMJ, tooth pain, headaches and root canals- once and for all!

And lastly, I appreciate his forthright willingness to help others and offer to do this video and share his story.  The hope is that it will help others that are feeling stuck and hesitant.

As his wife reminded him-

Life's too short to live it in pain everyday.

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]]><![CDATA[For those seeking Invoices for their Insurance to possibly reimburse]]>Thu, 07 Nov 2024 15:40:48 GMThttp://hansptgroup.com/hans-tmj--orofacial-blog/for-those-seeking-invoices-for-their-insurance-to-possibly-reimburseI thought it might be helpful to provide-  

A Guide to Reading your Invoice


As you know by now- my services are offered as an out-of-pocket service.  I am not able to bill through insurances or guarantee insurance reimbursement.  


Why?  


Because as a certified TMJ clinician of 30 years- I’m devoted to providing the best care possible.  When providing a medical insurance that goes through your insurance the quality of care spirals downward quickly.

I’d need to bill for increased time documenting and billing with what I find to be essentially unnecessary documentation because it's time spent away from actually helping the patient.  Yes, that means much less time and attention with you the patient.  Have you seen the therapist with their face in their laptop ignoring what you’re saying or leaving you to do some exercises on your own or with an unlicensed aid.  This is not what I provide.  I provide one-on-one quality hands-on service.


My expertise is in musculoskeletal pain.  I recognize that I’m not equipped to solve more complex insurance billing questions and to do so would necessitate increasing your costs to hire a full-time insurance coordinator.   So I’ve made the decision to avoid doing that to my patients.



And as a courtesy to those of you that request it- in the initial paperwork I’ve outlined the invoice process and exactly what I’m able to provide in my invoice. This is the standard information that many of my patients are able to get reimbursed with when they provide the invoice.  
Unfortunately, some insurances will do what they can to avoid payment.  Is is very unfortunate that insurances will utilize tactics like this.  But I recognize that there is the possibility that they can unnecessarily deny claims.


In this post, I wanted to clearly identify what I am able to provide in my invoices and what each piece of information is.   Outside of the provided information I’m unfortunately unable to assist further.   But if you would like to try here is the standard information I have contained in my invoices.


This includes and is confined to the following:  


Company Name/Address
ICD-10 (Dx) Code
CPT codes
treatment times
NPI
EIN
total treatment session amounts
total treatment amount.

What is ICD-10?  

Essentially it's a diagnosis code.  And if you'd like you can find a thorough explanation here.

What are CPT codes?

Essentially they are 5 digit procedure codes.  And if you'd like you can find a thorough explanation here.


I've attached a sample invoice here below.  This should help with your questions should you have any.

Picture
In this example:

​The ICD-10 (Dx) code is M54.2 
The CPT codes are 97162, 97140 and 97110 
]]><![CDATA[What is... Non-Odontogenic Tooth Pain??]]>Mon, 28 Oct 2024 23:28:21 GMThttp://hansptgroup.com/hans-tmj--orofacial-blog/what-is-non-odontogenic-tooth-painOkay, this little bugger is a sneaky one. 

The assumption when our patients are experiencing exasperating tooth pain is that there’s an infection.  Often that’s the case… until it isn’t.

I have an incredible endodontic referral source that myself and others are convinced is at the very highest levels of endodontic care.  Because he is so intuitive at knowing when-

A root canal IS NOT indicated.  And I've seen that-

For this- he earns the ultimate respect from his patients


These patients gush over him when they see me because invariably he helps his patients avoid an expensive unnecessary procedure. 


But how??


Because he has the unique ability to recognize muscular myofascial pain that directly leads to non-odontogenic tooth pain.  
Many of these patient have had multiple dental procedures through the years that they just can’t seem to resolve.
I've seen it and often resolved it and- 


I love the satisfaction of helping these patients!  


Rather than have me talk about what I see from a muscle perspective- I would absolutely love to have this Endodontist present on what he identifies from a dental perspective.  To share what helps him identify an excellent referral candidate.  I know he has given a number of talks on this throughout the last decade that I’ve worked with him. 

If you’re interested- let me know know and I’ll see if I can present an opportunity for this acclaimed Endodontist to speak on this topic.​  

But here below are my 3 Keys
  
3 keys to Identify a Patient with Non-Odontogenici Tooth Pain

1.  They present with Autonomic Hyperarousal- signs include anxiety, PTSD, panic attacks, Type A tendencies, OCD tendencies and catastrophizing.

2.  They often have limited and/or assymetrical neck motion/discomfort 

3.  They will have either strong SCM/trapezius/masseter tenderness to palpation aka Myofasical Pain.

Here's a couple of pictures demonstrating how highly sensitive muscles commonly refer into the teeth
]]><![CDATA[What can TMJ treatment look like for individual with TMJ]]>Sun, 06 Oct 2024 02:56:20 GMThttp://hansptgroup.com/hans-tmj--orofacial-blog/what-can-tmj-treatment-look-like-for-individual-with-tmjFor the past 15 years in my office I've seen many hundreds of patients dealing with TMJ and TMJ-related symptoms come through my doors.

I thought it might be helpful to have a glimpse at what a typical individual dealing with TMJ can look like.

The woman that I saw yesterday was 46 years old.  She had been dealing with her symptoms that included jaw pain with dysfunctional jaw opening, neck and shoulder pain, and daily headaches including 5-10 migraines a month that incapacitate her.  She also recently began experiencing vertigo and ear pressure/ringing 1 month ago.  She was taking prednisone (a steroid that can often have these common side effects).  She is avoiding eating meat, chips and sandwiches.

This is what I find interesting and somewhat depressing.  In the last 4 years, she's seen a neurologist that recommended medications that she was intolerant to and she found unhelpful.  She received a night guard that failed to reduce her symptoms.  She was treated with a CPAP machine at night to increase her oxygen and that created excessive oxygen pressure in the stomach and intestines.  It created acid reflux and eventually he was treated for multiple related hernias.  

She initially spent over $1000 on 2 treatments of botox.  They were ineffective in altering her symptoms but she was advised to continue them 4x/year anyway. It was explained to her that they would eventually start to diminish her symptoms. She opted to discontinue the botox.  

She most recently began a $5000 Invisalign treatment that has moderately increased her jaw pain and treatment will continue for 1 year.  Finally she's sought assistance from a local hospital physical therapist 3x/week for the last 2 months.  She did report a day of some mild relief afterwards before it returns again the next day.

For the past 3 years she's been unable work

And recently she's been unable to drive because of the vertigo.  She sleeps 5.5 hours/night on average and perhaps worst of all her partner relates that she has lost her self-esteem, sense of worth as she used to be very physically active and fit previously.  Now she's often bed-bound and not working.
Picture
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I see individuals that are suffering more and less.  Some that have spent much more money or perhaps are just starting their TMJ process.   But I do think it's helpful for those out there suffering similarly- that it's not that uncommon and that you're not alone.

But just know-

You can get better again.

Find someone with certified TMJ expertise like a CCTT.  

That's the certification I have earned.  

Find someone with experience in treating TMJ exclusively for at least 10 years.

Find someone that not only effectively resolves your TMJ symptoms- pain, tightness, headaches, ear ringing, vertigo, etc.-

But also just as or even more importantly, someone that teaches you the causes of your issues and teaches you how to eliminate them so your symptoms don't return.

Hang in there.  With the right direction, it does get better!
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]]><![CDATA[Jaw/Neck/Shoulder/Headache Patient Testimonial]]>Tue, 16 Jul 2024 13:56:30 GMThttp://hansptgroup.com/hans-tmj--orofacial-blog/jawneckshoulderheadache-patient-testimonialSometimes it's hard to know what to do next when you've sought help from all kinds different medical treatments- doctors, massage therapists, chiropractors, dentists, physical therapists... and nothing seems to actually help.

If this is you, I know you'll find this story inspiring.

My patient had experienced 20 years of these debilitating issues!  He had to drop out of college, stopped being active, working out and doing the things he loved like skateboarding.  And gained 60lbs!

Much credit to him because, for some reason, he didn't give up.  And he finally found the treatment he needed through all his perseverance.

I've only seen him 1x this year- and he's back to skateboarding every weekend! 

Awesome work, Greg!
]]><![CDATA[The BOOM!! Travell Dry Needling Results: Before and After]]>Fri, 19 May 2023 17:58:19 GMThttp://hansptgroup.com/hans-tmj--orofacial-blog/the-boom-travell-dry-needling-results-before-and-after Wanna see what Travell method Dry Needling can do for you?

Here's a patient video that demonstrates the astounding muscle changes that occurred...
]]><![CDATA[How Can you Get the Best Results from Dry Needling. Part 2]]>Fri, 19 May 2023 17:38:53 GMThttp://hansptgroup.com/hans-tmj--orofacial-blog/how-can-you-get-the-best-results-from-dry-needling-part-2Some more helpful tips on seeing the best results from Dry Needling...

When it comes to facial or TMJ Dry Needling-
Definitely use specialized facial acupuncture needles! These do take more skill from your clinician to use though as these needles are more fragile.

Does Electrical Dry Needling work well?
Sorry, no, not in my experience. I've had patients that have experienced both electrical dry needling vs the Travell dry needling I utilize in my office. They are astounded by how much more effective Travell dry needling is!

Electrical dry needling isn't very discriminatory and fails to develop skill in the clinician. It's typically just stick the needle in and hope the electricity does its job.

With Travell dry needling- we are repeatedly perfusing very specifically the tiny bands of muscle in spasm. This allows for immediate oxygen/nutrients back into the painful muscle so it can breath. And flushes out the painful inflammatory chemicals.

Dry Needling is easily the most powerful muscle spasm treatment intervention.  But not every dry needling experience is created equal!   

The clinician's skill level is a huge differentiator.  Just see my patients' reviews for the proof ;)


]]><![CDATA[TMJ Dry Needling- How Do You Know if It's Working?]]>Wed, 17 May 2023 22:33:18 GMThttp://hansptgroup.com/hans-tmj--orofacial-blog/tmj-dry-needling-how-do-you-know-if-its-workingGreat question!

Here's a video to help answer how to know:

-What to expect from facial travell method dry needling
-What kind of TMJ/facial dry needling is most effective
​-What kind is less effective
]]><![CDATA[What You Can Expect From hANS Physical Therapy]]>Wed, 10 May 2023 23:14:41 GMThttp://hansptgroup.com/hans-tmj--orofacial-blog/what-you-can-expect-from-hans-physical-therapyJust a quick explainer video of what I specialize in treating...

​-And also what a typical plan of care looks like for a patient.

(Click on the video below to watch)
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]]><![CDATA[TMJ Dry Needling 3/4]]>Tue, 02 May 2023 15:19:16 GMThttp://hansptgroup.com/hans-tmj--orofacial-blog/tmj-dry-needling-34Wanna know how dry needling works?

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