Dec 12, 2014 update
There is a new office in Highland Park Illinois where Dr Shapira is also seeing patients.
Visit the new website @ www.thinkbetterlife.com

The majority of all headaches and migraines are secondary or related to trigeminal nervous function. Neuromuscular treatment combined with posturology, trigger point injections and Sphenopalatine Ganglion blocks can give life-changing results.

Headaches and Migraines affect up to 45 million Americans on a yearly basis. Many of these patients experience pain that destroys their quality of life, interferes with family relationships and results in patients desperate for relief. An extremely effective treatment for headaches is a neuromuscular orthotic. More can be found on headache statistics @ http://www.ihateheadaches.org/headache-statistics.html

Treating chronic pain through neuromuscular dentistry is an internationally established treatment protocol. Patients can benefit from correction of maxillary-mandibular relations and the associated musculature. The successful treatment of long-term chronic pain demands a more complete approach that addresses posture, Craniocervical relations, the autonomic nervous system and the elimination of chronic muscle pain coming from trigger points and tight bands in muscles.

Dr Ira L Shapira has been treating patients with TMJ disorders and chronic pain with neuromuscular orthotics for over 30 years. The problem is that periodic visits are often not proper method to address these problems. Treating patients successfully requires making significant changes quickly and the allowing the body to reestablish a new homeostasis.

Dr Shapira is a Diplomate of The American Academy of Pain Management and the American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine as well as a Fellow of the International College of CranioMandibular Orthopedics (ICCMO). He will now accept a limited amount of long distance patients in his Gurnee practice and has established an intensive initial treatment protocol that will require patients to come to Chicago on Sunday and stay for three to four days of intensive treatment initially before returning home.

Patients will begin their diagnostic work-up Monday morning and will receive a Diagnostic Neuromuscular Orthotic later that afternoon. They will also be evaluated for Myofascial Pain and Dysfunction and an examination of cranial and cervical musculature will determine whether trigger point therapy will be utilized. Patients are taught how to self-administer Sphenopalatine Ganglion Blocks that are useful in preventing migraine and other vascular conditions.

Almost all chronic headaches, tension-type headaches, chronic daily headache and atypical chronic migraines have a primary musculature component and are largely trigeminal in nature. That is why examination and treatment of musculature trigger points is an essential element of headache treatment.

Dr Shapira is keenly aware of the effects of posture on chronic pain and works with other medical professional to address specific postural problems and gives his patients instructions on utilizing postural techniques to correct imbalances.

Posturology is the study of effects of postural change throughout the body and utilizing these effects to allow healing. Dr Shapira has long stated that doctors do not “heal” their patients, but rather help remove the impediments to healing and allow the body to “heal itself”.

The use of prescription medication to control chronic headaches and migraines can be dangerous due to a vast amount of side effects that do not enhance healing or improve patient’s lifestyle. Ideally, patients will gradually be able to decrease or eliminate many or all of their medications.

The use of Sphenopalatine Ganglion Blocks (SPG blocks) was popularized in the book “Miracles on Park Avenue” by Albert B Gerber. Dr Shapira considers this an SPG block a “savior” for many patients because they can be taught to self-administer an SPG block at home. It is very rare for patients to be taught to self-administer this treatment but Dr Shapira feels that it helps many patients with chronic headaches regain control of their lives.

Quality of life is what patients are seeking but spending all their time in doctor’s offices is anything but a high quality of life. SPG blocks can be used prophylactically to abort or prevent headaches and migraines helping patients avoid countless trips to ER’s and doctors offices.

Dr Shapira treats patients at Delany Dental Care (http://www.delanydentalcare.com/neuromuscular.html) in Gurnee, Il. The offices were moved to a new location at 310 South Greenleaf in August after 27 years in its previous location.

Patients will be required to be accepted into treatment. Prior to acceptance a detailed history and phone interview will be required.

Contact Dr Shapira at 847-623-5530 or 1-800-TM-Joint or through his websites
http://www.ihateheadaches.org/illinois.html
http://www.delanydentalcare.com/neuromuscular.html

Dr Ira L Shapira is an author and section editor of Sleep and Health Journal, President of I HATE CPAP LLC, I HATE HEADACHES.org, President Dato-TECH, and has a Gurnee Dental Practice with his partner Dr Mark Amidei. Dr Shapira is well known for his tretment of Sleep Apnea and Snoring, Headaches and TMJ disorders. He has recently formed Chicagoland Dental Sleep Medicine Associates. He is the Secretary of ICCMO and its representative to the TMD Alliance, He was a founding and certified member of the Sleep Disorder Dental Society which became the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine, A founding member of DOSA the Dental Organization for Sleep Apnea. He is a Diplomate of the American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine, A Diplomat of the American Academy of Pain Management, a graduate of LVI. He is a former assistant professor at Rush Medical School’s Sleep Service where he worked with Dr Rosalind Cartwright who is a founder of Sleep Medicine and Dental Sleep Medicine. Dr Shapira is a consultant to numerous sleep centers and teaches courses in Dental Sleep Medicine and Pain Management in his office to doctors from around the U.S. He is the Founder of I HATE CPAP LLC and http://www.ihatecpap.com Dr Shapira also holds several patents on methods and devices for the prophylactic minimally invasive early removal of wisdom teeth and collection of bone marrow and stem cells. Dr Shapira is a licensed general dentist in Illinois and Wisconsin. He is currently on the Board of the Illinois Sleep Society.