NSU’s New Department Specializes in Orofacial Pain

NSU’s New Department Specializes in Orofacial Pain

Good news! Nova Southeastern University now offers help to those suffering from temporomandibular disorders (TMDs).

Nova Southeastern University’s College of Dental Medicine has opened a new Department of Orofacial Pain with Dr. Harold Menchel, DMD, as clinical director and Dr. Divya Kohli, BDS, MDS, as program director. The department is accredited by the American Dental Association.

NSU is the only university in Florida and one of two in the southeastern United States with an orofacial pain center.

At the practice at NSU, patients will be evaluated for temporomandibular disorders (TMDs), headaches, related neck pains, and neuropathic pains, and will be managed in an interdisciplinary setting with coordination of referring dentists and physicians.

According to the National Institutes of Health, TMDs are a group of more than 30 conditions that cause pain and dysfunction in the jaw joint and muscles that control jaw movement.

There are three main classes of TMDs:

• Disorders of the joints, including disc disorders.
• Disorders of the muscles used for chewing (masticatory muscles).
• Headaches associated with a TMD.

                      Dr. Harold Menchel, DMD                                                           Dr. Divya Kohli, BDS, MDS