SoCal TMJ & Headache — Los Angeles
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The Referral Loop Ends Here.
The Answer Your Other Doctors Could Not Find.
Dentists, endodontists, neurologists, ENTs, pain clinics. You have been through them. Every scan was normal. Every treatment helped for a while, then stopped. The issue is not that those providers were bad at what they do — it is that no single one of them was trained to find the answer. That answer is what this practice exists to deliver.
The Diagnostic Gap
The Typical Referral Sequence. And Why It Fails.
The General Dentist
Pain presents in the jaw or face. Dental examination shows no caries or periapical pathology. Patient is told “nothing is wrong” or given a nightguard.
Result: Symptomatic relief. No diagnosis.
The Specialist Referral Chain
Endodontist rules out pulpal pathology. ENT examination is normal. Neurologist orders an MRI — results are unremarkable. Pain management prescribes gabapentin or carbamazepine without confirming the cause.
Result: Serial consultations. Fragmented data. No unified diagnosis.
The Intervention Cascade
Multiple occlusal splints are fabricated. Physical therapy provides temporary relief. Botox injections are attempted. The patient accumulates treatments while the underlying condition remains unclassified.
Result: Escalating interventions without diagnostic convergence.
The Diagnostic Resolution
A Board Qualified Orofacial Pain Specialist performs a comprehensive classification using DC/TMD criteria, on-site CBCT imaging, and quantitative sensory testing. The root cause is identified. Treatment is directed at the confirmed diagnosis.
Result: The answer. A targeted treatment plan. A protocol built on data, not guesses.
Specialized Scope
Why No One Else Found the Answer.
Orofacial pain lives in the space between dentistry and neurology. Each provider you saw covered one piece. None of them were looking at the whole picture. What has been missing is someone whose sole purpose is to find the cause.
Dr. Chung provides that integration — examining joint, nerve, vascular, and muscular contributors simultaneously. The goal is not to describe the process. The goal is to give you the answer.
General Dentist
Structural & Oral Health
Ensures the integrity of teeth, periodontal tissues, and occlusion. The primary lens for dental and oral structural evaluation.
Neurologist
Systemic Neurological Health
Evaluates the central and peripheral nervous system. Identifies systemic neurological pathology — MS, tumor, neurovascular compression.
Oral Surgeon
Structural Surgical Intervention
Manages hard-tissue and surgical pathology of the jaw, condyles, and craniofacial skeleton. The primary lens for surgical intervention.
Orofacial Pain Specialist
Diagnostic Integration
Bridges dentistry and neurology through Comprehensive Diagnosis — ICOP taxonomy, DC/TMD criteria, quantitative sensory testing, and on-site CBCT imaging. Identifies the root cause and routes treatment accordingly.
Objective Diagnostic Data
The Technology That Finds the Source.
On-site CBCT imaging provides immediate, high-resolution 3D craniofacial evaluation — eliminating the delay and fragmentation of external imaging referrals. This is not a screening tool. It is a diagnostic instrument that reveals the structural reality of the temporomandibular joints, airway, and craniofacial skeleton.
On-Site CBCT Imaging
- High-resolution 3D visualization of the TMJ condyles, articular eminence, and joint space
- Detection of osseous changes, degenerative joint disease, and condylar morphology abnormalities
- Immediate results on the day of your consultation — no external referral, no waiting period
- Eliminates the delay and fragmentation of ordering imaging through third-party facilities
ICOP Taxonomy
- International Classification of Orofacial Pain — the standardized diagnostic framework adopted worldwide
- Classifies pain as musculoskeletal (TMD), neuropathic (nerve-related), neurovascular (migraine/cluster), or idiopathic
- Every diagnosis is mapped to an evidence-based treatment pathway
- Prevents the “diagnostic drift” that occurs when clinicians use inconsistent terminology
Your Specialist
Dr. Sang H. Chung, DMD
Board Qualified Orofacial Pain Specialist. Fellowship-level training at the University of Southern California. Every patient who enters this office receives the same standard: the answer first, treatment second.
Diagnostic Consultation
Stop Guessing. Start Knowing.
If you have been through three or more providers without a diagnosis, seeing another one of the same type will produce the same result. What you need is the answer. Not another treatment. Not another opinion. The answer.
Prefer to call? (323) 238-9134