Rethinking TMDs: Why Current Models Fail and What Science Means for Patient Care
Speaker
Mildred Embree is an orthodontist-scientist who studies skeletal joint development and diseases, adult stem cells, and tissue regeneration. She focuses on osteoarthritis, which involves the breakdown of cartilage in joints. Research in her lab bridges basic and clinical science, seeks to develop minimally invasive treatments for osteoarthritis, including stem cell therapies, to help restore or regenerate the cartilage. Her work is paving the way for potential treatments for this disease. Embree earned her DMD and PhD from the Medical University of South Carolina before joining the Columbia faculty in 2010, earning tenure in 2023.
Disclosure: Ms. Embree has a financial relationship with Wnt Scientific, she serves as Chief Scientific Officer, is an inventor on related patents, and holds equity. She has an ownership interest in the company.
Course Description
Temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) are common yet poorly understood, in part because traditional models centered on occlusion and structural findings fail to address patient symptoms or predict outcomes. This course challenges these long-standing assumptions by discussing the disconnect between imaging, pathology, and pain, and reframes TMD as a heterogeneous, biologically driven condition. By integrating whole-joint and whole-patient care with emerging insights into pain, inflammation, and degeneration, this lecture highlights why current approaches fall short. It also outlines how a precise, multidisciplinary, science-driven model can shape the future of patient care.
Educational Objectives
PDMContinuingEd@dental.upenn.edu