Comfort Discomfort
The goal of orthodontists is to improve the quality of life of their patients. Unfortunately most orthodontists don’t do as much as can be done for the quality of life of their patients during treatment. Too many patients relate the fact that they were in pain during treatment. They complain that their teeth were very sore and that they had facial pain and headaches. Their orthodontists told them to take Tylenol and to use warm saltwater rinses. This does help, but we do a lot more during treatment to keep the quality of life of our patients from deteriorating.
We not only say we care about our patients but we prove we care by our actions!
We are proactive in keeping you as comfortable as possible during orthodontic treatment. When conventional orthodontic techniques are used, it is common for patients to have some discomfort the day of the appointment and up to two days after the adjustment. If patients are sensitive, discomfort can last for a week or more. For the patients who are very sensitive or for the patients who want minimal discomfort, we have been offering our patients the use of a very sophisticated TENS unit since 1983. This TENS unit decreases discomfort and speeds up the healing process. We have used this instrument successfully on over 8,000 patients. This is the same instrument that has been used by Emmitt Smith and many of our professional athletes and Olympic athletes. It is also the same instrument that has been used for many years by dental specialists who treat patients who suffer from facial pain, chronic pain, and TMJ dysfunction.
Dr. Mireles has been an advisor to research on the use of TENS instrumentation in the management of pain and healing. This research has been completed and published at Baylor University, University of Texas Dental Branch at Houston and at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.
The bottom line is, this instrumentation WORKS FANTASTICALLY!!! For those patients who are sensitive, this treatment is a godsend. We have many patients come to us because they have heard other patients relate nightmarish stories of prolonged pain and discomfort while our patients are very comfortable or pain-free. THERE IS A DIFFERENCE!!! Dr. Mireles is proactive in keeping his patients comfortable and is the ONLY orthodontist in San Antonio who is using this instrumentation.
