ABOUT OCCLUSION CONNECTIONS
Where dentists come to discover what the profession has been missing
GENERAL DENTISTS · SPECIALISTS · DENTAL TECHNICIANS · TEAM
The dental profession is in a very specific kind of sleep. It is not laziness. It is not stupidity. It is something more insidious — institutional momentum. Dental schools teach CR. Study clubs reinforce CR. Dental publications validate CR. CE programs build on CR. The entire ecosystem of dental education has been self-reinforcing the same paradigm for 60 years — and that paradigm is now shifting slowly toward objective measurement, cervical EMGs, a myocentric position that confirms optimal airway, optimal posture of the bite and biotensigrity of the complete postural system. They call it physiologic, muscle based freedom. So dentists are not failing their complex TMD patients through lack of effort. They are failing them through lack of access to the right clinical understanding — bio-physiologic science. That science exists. It has been developed, refined and an clinically proven over 30 years of objective measured clinical practice. It lives at Occlusion Connections.
A new understanding is required of today’s dentist to grasp underlying factors that relate clinical dentistry to both the gnathic and neuromuscular principles of occlusion. This journey is a blended process that brings an in-depth understanding of the clinical challenges each dentist faces in clinical practice and experiences with answers that finally make clinical sense. Together with honest respectful discipline and courage these organic bio-physiologic concepts will come together in both skilled clinical application and objective-physiologic measured science.
Center for Gneuromuscular Dentistry & Orthopedic Advancement
Occlusion Connections (OC) is an advanced teaching center upholding gnathic and neuromuscular 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.
This is Gneuromuscular. This is GNM.
- 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 worldwide to apply the neuromuscular principles in everyday 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 gnathologic and neuromuscular 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.
Our Clinical Viewpoint
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 proprioceptive 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 Community & Culture
Ready to Train
Written by Clayton A. Chan, D.D.S. — Founder and Director, Occlusion Connections | Las Vegas, Nevada
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