About OC

CENTER FOR GNEUROMUSCULAR DENTISTRY & ORTHOPEDIC ADVANCEMENT

Occlusion Connections (OC) is an advanced teaching center upholding neuromuscular and gnathic principles at their highest levels. GNM is a blended advanced approach implementing both the G (gnathic) + NM (neuromuscular) principles in dentistry.

Occlusion Connections is a group of dental professionals who are dedicated toward promoting dental health and wellness to those in need nationally and internationally. It is comprised of a community of dentists and laboratory technicians who are trained and skilled in temporomandibular joint dysfunction, restorative/prosthetic and orthodontic/orthopedic dentistry.

Occlusion Connections promotes research, education and service to the dental profession and public.
It acknowledges the value and science of physiologic dentistry.
It encourages dentists world wide to apply the neuromuscular principles in every day clinical practice.
It focuses on the goodness and well-being of people.
It respects a quality of life that upholds a healthy perspective towards business, government, education and family.
It focuses on giving back in service and to those in need.
This group represents the highest level of dental care providers who have advanced training, skill, judgment and experience in helping those in desperate need.
Occlusion Connections espouses a complete and balanced perspective of both neuromuscular and gnathologic principles.

OC TRAINING

OC offers advanced post-graduate dental training for dentists, technicians, and team members. Our curriculum is built around three core disciplines:

TMD Pain Management – Understanding the physiologic principles of occlusion and diagnosis is foundational to successful advanced dentistry.
Restorative/Prosthetics – Stabilizing and treatment planning complex cases involving cervical dysfunction, TMJ primary problems, Class II division 2 and anterior open bites discrepancies.
Orthodontic/Orthopedics – Growth and development, removable and fixed appliances, and verticalization mechanics to transition from removable orthotic to natural dentition.

We’ve created a safe, open healthy atmosphere for learning, support and guidance—where clinicians grow professionally with freedom and personally to reach their full potential, supported by peers and mentors. Dentists from North America and abroad come to OC to gain clarity, confidence, clinical mastery and leadership.

Clinical View Point:

At OC, we teach that bite and occlusion are dominant factors influencing posture, strength, and systemic health. A posteriorized mandible can trigger cervical accommodations, occipital tension, and musculoskeletal pain. We emphasize that true alignment—whether cervical, pelvic, or postural—cannot hold unless the bite is optimized.

Forward head posture is a result of the proprieceptive signalling of a posteriorized (Class II, Class II div 2, retrognathic) mandible. Cervical neck accommodations will ensue, resulting in occipital tension and shoulder and upper trapezius pains. While some clinicians believe that aligning the neck and rest of the body first…. they all admit that the alignment of the cervical bones, and spine will not hold stable unless a good optimized bite is present to change the proprioceptive occlusal signaling responses between the upper and lower jaws which act as a feedback mechanism to maintain any corrective alignments to the upper cervical, pelvis (sacrum/iliac), tibia and feet.

It is clear from years of experience and dental practice when the mandible is posterior to an optimized myo-trajectory (a posterior closure pattern) the pelvis tips forward, knees roll inward, feet pronate (flat feet). A good optimized bite/occlusion is known to positively affect all those factors with all TMD patients, even if they present with expensive corrective insoles.

Through K7 diagnostics and the GNM approach, we’ve seen firsthand how a properly designed bite can transform lives—even in patients who’ve tried costly corrective therapies. The dominance of the trigeminal nerve system (V) which governs the masticatory mechanism does in fact influence distant parts of the body in profound ways.

These principles are the heartbeat of Occlusion Connections. We challenge our members not merely to understand the science—but to embody it through wisdom, skill, and compassion. OC instills a commitment to excellence by encouraging clinicians to refine their didactic knowledge, sharpen their clinical judgment, and deepen their confidence in the GNM approach. It’s not just about what you know—it’s about how you apply it, and who you become in the process.

“It is not how much you know, but how one applies these concepts and does it – that is what counts.”

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OC Vision by Design
OC’s Shared Core Values, Mission and Goal
What is Gneuromuscular (GNM) Dentistry
Who Are the GNM Dentists?
OC Dental Education – The GNM Way
Who are the GNM Dentists?
OC Ode: Prayer for the GNM Operator
OC EXPERIENCE – A Gathering of Clinicians of Like-mind