Milwaukee’s Dental and Medical Schools Collaborate to Tackle TMD

Milwaukee’s Marquette University School of Dentistry and the Medical College of Wisconsin are collaborating to bring medicine and dentistry together on the issue of temporomandibular disorder (TMD), which causes pain and dysfunction in the jaw joint and muscles controlling jaw movement. In early February, students from Marquette University School of Dentistry participated in a collaborative interprofessional event at the Medical College of Wisconsin, learning alongside first-year medical students about the necessity of coordinated care for this multifaceted condition.  The interprofessional program, now in its second year, included 300 students from both campuses with plans to expand next year to include students enrolled in Marquette’s physical therapy program. The inception of the program began when the TMJ Association, a patient advocacy group based in Milwaukee, reached out to the Medical College with the goal of promoting awareness among practitioners. This advocacy group, created by patients with TMD, is intimately aware of the impact on patients when there is limited evidenced-based training and a lack of standardized care. Patients who live with the orofacial pain associated with TMD can experience prolonged and debilitating effects. To address this issue, the workshop connects three disciplines to broaden students’ understanding of the condition through the lens of medicine, physical therapy, and dentistry. Click here to read more.